


Metronome

by love_personified



Category: AOMG, Jay Park (Musician)
Genre: Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Interracial Relationship, Unplanned Pregnancy, cursing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-07
Updated: 2019-02-06
Packaged: 2019-07-07 23:44:06
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 44,196
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15918648
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/love_personified/pseuds/love_personified
Summary: He was bound to wear her down, eventually.





	1. I.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, guys. I also have this story posted on AFF under the same username.

_Allegory - A narrative technique in which the characters are portrayed as things or concepts to convey a message. Usually used for satirical or political purposes._

~

Monogamy was not Sloane’s thing. 

 

It never had been, and it never would be. The entire concept of monogamy was _boring_ ; why on Earth would you want to voluntarily shackle yourself to one person for your entire life? 

 

“You’re just a slut.” Raina, Sloane’s best friend, popped a Bonbon into her mouth. The two women had been friends since their diaper days (their fathers were also best friends), which meant that every lifetime milestone had been completed together— even moving all the way out to New York for their careers. “There’s nothing wrong with it, but I’m gonna need you to be honest with yourself.” 

 

Sloane grinned and shrugged, crossing one leg over the other. “Don’t put a title on it. You know I hate them.” They were at the New York headquarters for Dazed Digital, an online subset of Dazed Magazine. Raina was the Art Director, while Sloane was the lead Music Contributor. “Should we head out to that underground concert, later?” 

 

“The Korean one?” Raina scrunched her face up, pushing her plastic tray of Bonbons away. “What the _hell_ — we won’t even be able to understand anything.” Sloane shrugged, reaching up to tug on one of her auburn curls.

 

“It’s Korean Hip Hop; language barrier aside, it’ll be something to do.” Work, which consisted of scouring New York’s music scene for something to write about, had been unusually slow that day. “None of the artists I’ve been following are original, and I’ll die if I have to write another piece on French Montana.” She leaned forward, dropping a hand on her best friend’s shoulder. “Do you hear me? _I’ll die_.”

 

“Calm down, drama queen.” Raina scoffed, shrugging Sloane’s hand away. “I never said that I wouldn’t go—” 

 

Sloane clapped her hands happily. “You really _do_ love me!” she stood up suddenly, forcing Raina to look up at her. “Let’s ditch and look for something to wear at Century21.”

 

“We’ve only been here an hour, and you already wanna skip out. How have you not been fired, yet?” Raina let out a long-suffering sigh, standing up, and pushing some of her bottle brown hair behind her ears. “Oh, right; because Johnny-Boy is holding a torch for you.” Johnny-Boy, also known as John Bowen, was the lead editor at Dazed Digital. His lifelong goal seemed to be getting into Sloane’s pants. 

 

“What can I say?” Sloane grinned and gave a little, celebratory twerk. “It’s one of the many perks of being me.”

~

The concert was being held at The Habitat, over in Brooklyn. Sloane and Raina (who was along to snap pics for the article) had been there plenty of times for research on other artists. And, since the redhead was on a first-name basis with the bouncer, she and her best friend were able to get into the club with relative ease.

 

The Habitat was decently packed (though it seemed to be more teenagers than adults in attendance), but Sloane and Raina were able to navigate the crowd easily. “Who are we here to see again?” the Music Contributor shrugged, sitting down at the bar.

 

“I forgot.” She signaled the bartender for a beer, and Raina plopped down on to the bar stool beside her. “They go by some acronym, I think. SMOG, maybe?” an ice cold, deliciously frothy beer slid to a stop in front of Sloane. “I heard that the CEO was American. I’ll try to talk to him after the show.”

 

“You didn’t do any research, did you?” Raina’s usual gin and tonic slid straight into her hand. “Typical.”

 

Sloane giggled, leaning into her friend. “You know I live for the element of surprise.” The lights dimmed, and the crowd began to cheer. “Do you think any of the artists will be worth bussing it open for?” The Music Contributor had to yell to be heard.

 

Raina let out a surprised little laugh. “If there is, try not to hurt the poor man.” on the stage, the DJ began to spin. “Oh shit, it’s starting.” The brunette lifted her drink into the air. “Shall we toast to not being able to understand anything?”

 

“Oops. Too late.” Sloane had already shotgunned her beer. She slammed her empty glass on to the bar. “Let’s order another!” almost immediately, another beer was slid over.

 

The show started out with a smooth beat.

 

It reminded Sloane of trap music, which wasn’t that big of a surprise. These days, it was growing increasingly more difficult to find a music scene that wasn’t inspired by the likes of Future and Waka Flocka. In the back of the red head’s mind, the fact that she should have been writing her observations down briefly registered. But she was pleasantly buzzed and didn’t really feel like it.

 

There was some special effect fog (and really unnecessary light strobing), then some guy appeared, eliciting deafening screams. “Jesus.” Raina took a sip of her drink. “Who is this guy, again?”

 

“Jaebeom Park.” Sloane shrugged, looking thoughtful, “Although, I am positive that I’m not saying his name right, so don't quote me.” She turned her attention back to the stage, where the guy had started singing. “Do you think that’s him? Nice voice. I bet his ass is even better.”

 

“Mhm.” A few other guys joined the first one on stage. “Should I start taking pictures?”

 

“It’s too dark; let’s wait until we get backstage.” Sloane leaned back against the bar, watching as the singer broke into an impressive dance routine. “He’s dancing now? At a hip-hop show? I have officially seen everything.”

 

Raina looked confused. “So… he’s not a rapper?”

 

“Who cares?” Sloane smirked, watching the singer whip his shirt off and toss into the crowd. “If he keeps moving his hips like that, Jay Park can be whatever he wants.”

~

Waking up in an unfamiliar bed was nothing new to Sloane.

 

It was a side effect of being a self-proclaimed ho, as bad as that sounds. On the upside, whoever’s bed she was lying in was beyond comfortable. Hotel-issued, maybe? 

 

Sloane allowed herself a languid stretch but froze when her hand brushed over something hard. Someone was in bed with her. _That_ was new. 

 

“I know you’re awake, Doll.”

 

The redhead didn’t bother with opening her eyes. “And I know that your staring is creeping me out.” No response.

 

Half a minute later, when Sloane finally opened her eyes, she found her latest tryst grinning down at her; it was that singer from last night. Jay, maybe? She wasn’t entirely sure. The guy was cute, though.

 

“Morning, Sleeping Beauty.” the nickname made Sloane grimace.

 

“ _Christ_. Were you this corny last night?” She checked under the bedcovers, only to find that she wasn’t wearing any clothes. “Damn. You wouldn’t happen to know where I dropped my panties, by any chance? It was a thong; a really expensive red pair.”

 

“They’re probably in the lounge.” Jay rested his head on his hand, his gaze never leaving Sloane’s face. “Are you hungry? I can order us some room service.”

 

“Oh…” By now, Sloane was already out of bed, grabbing random articles of last night’s outfit from around the room. “We probably shouldn’t.” she disappeared into the lounge, on the hunt for her underwear.

 

“You don’t have to leave, you know.” Jay sat up against the headboard, frowning. “I was hoping that we could hang out.”

 

“Yeah, I don’t want to do that.” Sloane came back into the room, panties and strapless bra in place. “But hey— great show, yeah? I’ll be sure to write a kick-ass article about you and your label. Check for it in about a month or so.”

 

“Wait a minute…” The singer struggled to get out of bed and ended up nearly face-planting on the floor. “ _Wait_.” he managed to catch up to Sloane just as she opened the front door. “Let me have your phone number, at least.”

 

“Mhm… mhm.” Sloane bit down on her bottom lip, pretending to look thoughtful. “I don’t want to do that, either.” When Jay decided to look like a kicked puppy, she groaned. “ _Jesus_ , what’s with that face?” the redhead whined, stomping her foot. “I thought all music artists were into one-night stands. That and the way you moved your hips are the _only_ reasons I slept with you.”

 

Jay shrugged. “Well, I’m not like that.” Sloane tried to ignore the fact that he was wearing nothing but the bedsheet tied around his waist. “I like you, Sloane. I wouldn’t have brought you back here if I didn’t.” Yikes— the guy even remembered her name?

 

“Really? Because I don’t seem to remember us doing any talking last night.” The singer grabbed Sloane’s waist, pulling her away from the door, “You’re touching me— oh my God, _why_.”

 

“I’m asking you to stay for breakfast, Doll.” Jay leaned into Sloane, nosing at her cheek. “We should get to know each other.”

 

“Do _not_ call me Doll.”

 

“You liked it last night.” Jay pressed himself against Sloane, and the bedsheet around his waist fell to the floor. “Stay. You don’t want me to go hungry, right?” he lifted an eyebrow, and understanding suddenly dawned on Sloane. 

 

“ _Oh_.” Jay began to walk backward, pulling her along with him. “Why weren’t you offering that before?”

 

The CEO grinned, pressing Sloane up against a wall. “I was. But you were too busy trying to get out of here to notice.” He laughed into their kiss, nipping at her bottom lip. “I can barely remember what you taste like, and you’re already running from me.”

 

“You’re a clingy one.” Jay hummed, lowering himself down to knees. He lifted one of Sloane’s legs, placing it on his shoulder.

 

“You’ll get used to it, Doll.”


	2. II

_Canon - Works generally considered by scholars, critics, and teachers to be the most important to read and study._

~

You’re working  _unnaturally_  hard.” Raina perched herself on Sloane’s desk, folding her arms over her chest. “Does this have anything to do with Gucci being released from prison?”

 

Sloane scoffed. “There hasn’t been any other decent news worth reporting for the past three weeks.” She finally pushed away from her MacBook, stretching her arms into the air. “I’ll be happy when he releases that mixtape.”

 

“Well, what about that concert we went to a few of weeks back? AOMG?” Sloane’s answer to that was a scoff. “Hey, bitch. You dragged me out to a concert where I understood fuck all and  _made_  me take pictures. You’re publishing that article.”

 

“Never said that I wasn’t, Rain.” Sloane looked back down at her computer, frowning. She really didn’t want to write about Gucci Mane, again. “They’re having another show, tonight.”

 

Raina made a small noise of understanding. “You’re thinking about CEO-bae.”

 

Sloane let out a disbelieving laugh. “Off the top of my head, there were five things wrong with that sentence. Maybe six.” She spun around in her chair. “You know I don’t do leftovers; not even my own, embarrassingly corny ones. Besides, you just wanna see that rapper.”

 

“No—”

 

“What was his name again?” Sloane grinned, grabbing a pencil, and tapping it on her chin in faux thoughtfulness. “ _Simon_ , was it? Simon D-O-M-I-N-I-C?”

 

Raina swatted at her best friend, scowling. “I hate you.”

 

“Yeah, yeah. You love me.” Sloane stood up, throwing her pencil down on to her desk. “Let’s go back to mine. I have the perfect outfit for you.”

~

“What’s the plan, this time?” Once again, Raina and Sloane were sitting at the bar, throwing back beers and gin and tonics, respectively. The concert had already started, which meant that Jay had spotted Sloane almost immediately, and had been staring her down for the entire duration of his set. “Are we just gonna pretend that CEO-bae hasn’t been eye-fucking you for his entire set?”

 

“Fuck off.” Sloane threw back the rest of her drink, grimacing at the burn. “You know I don’t do leftovers. And stop  _calling_  him that.”

 

“You’re full of shit.” Raina rolled her eyes before throwing back her own drink. “The guy dicked you down to high heaven, and you won’t even go and say hi. Mean ass.”

 

“Oh my  _God_ —”

 

Raina pointed her index finger in Sloane’s face “Selfish. That’s what you are.” She signaled for another drink, and two were slid down the bar. “If Simon even  _offered_  to do half the things you say that Jay did… girl,  _I’d_  propose to  _him_.” Sloane groaned, briefly contemplating the consequences of banging her head against the bar.

 

“Raina, the guy was so corny, it hurt to even listen…” Sloane could feel her personal space being invaded, and trailed off, turning in her seat. There was this big, burly, bodyguard-type staring down at her. “Can I help you?”

 

“Are you Sloane?” 

 

“Who wants to know?” The Music Contributor tilted her head to the side, trying to think back on her recent actions. “Look, if this is about me jumping behind the bar—”

 

“The boss wants to see you.” the presumed bodyguard turned his gaze on to Raina. “You too.” Raina’s jaw dropped.

 

“What did  _I_  do?” she turned to Sloane, looking betrayed. “You always gettin’ me into some shit—”

 

Sloane opened her mouth to retort (more like defend herself), but was interrupted by the bodyguard. “Let’s go.” He grabbed both women by the arm, hauling them off of their bar stools, and into the crowd.

 

Not even five minutes later, the trio had made it backstage, and the bodyguard shoved Raina and Sloane into a room labeled AOMG unceremoniously, “Wait here. Snacks and booze are on the table.” The door slammed shut, and the distinct sound of it being locked could be heard.

 

“He locked us in here.” Sloane hurried over to the door, trying the knob almost frantically. “That’s illegal, right?” 

 

“It’s probably a security measure.” Raina shrugged, dropping down on to a nearby couch. “You saw how those teenagers tried to storm the stage at the last show.”

 

The Music Contributor scowled. “That has absolutely nothing to do with  _me_ , though.” She walked over to the couch her best friend was sitting on and plopped down next to her. “You’re usually the precarious one; why aren’t you freaking out?”

 

“Because.” Raina opened her purse, pulling out a red, compact mirror. “I wanted to see Simon, and this way involves the least amount of work.”

 

“You have _got_ to be fucking with me—”

 

The door clicked, then opened again, revealing the bodyguard. He stepped into the room and off to the side, revealing a group of men and a few women. They were all still hype, no doubt reeling from the adrenaline rush that came with performing. 

 

The majority of the group paid no mind to the two unknown women (by now, they had to be used to it), entering the room, and going about their business. Raina literally preened at the mere sight of Simon Dominic, but Sloane settled for simply glaring at Jay.  

 

“Don’t look so happy to see me, Doll.” The CEO headed over to the couch the redhead was sitting on, perching himself on the armrest. “Did you enjoy the show?”

 

“I was until I got manhandled into coming backstage.”

 

Jay frowned. “Did Tony hurt you? Let me see—” he reached for Sloane’s arm, and she flinched away from him. “What? What’s wrong?”

 

“I don’t appreciate being forced to do things.” She snapped, flicking her auburn hair over her shoulder. “It’s right up there with being touched  _without_  my explicit permission.” Jay grinned, raising his hands in a surrendering motion.

 

“Are you really mad at me?” Sloane huffed, looking away pointedly. “C’mon, Doll… you wouldn’t even give me your number. What did you expect me to do?”

 

“I  _expected_  you to take the hint.” She folded her arms over her chest. “I 've already told you that I don't do relationships. And don’t call me Doll.”

 

Jay gave Sloane an easy smile. “And I told you that I was gonna change your mind.” The singer shrugged out of the bomber jacket he was wearing, leaving him only in a tank top. Sloane will not admit to staring at his tattoos. “So… are you hungry? There’s a really good diner a few blocks away.”

 

“Corny. I’m leaving.” Sloane stood up, shoving her purse under her arm. “Tell Raina to text me when she gets home.” She made to walk away, but Jay’s arm shot out, grabbing her by the waist. “Jesus—”

 

“You’re always so mean to me.” He pulled Sloane in between his legs, resting his chin on her shoulder. “You’re only nice after I make you cum.” The Music Contributor scoffed but didn’t pull away. 

 

“Who  _isn’t_  nice after an orgasm?”

 

“How about this, then?” The CEO turned his head so that his lips were brushing against Sloane’s skin every time they moved. “We’ll eat dinner together, and afterward, I’ll keep making you cum until you can’t help but want to be nice to me.”

 

Sloane rolled her eyes skyward. “I’m that easy, huh?” she turned so that she was facing Jay. “You think the promise of free food and good dick will make my legs just fall open, right?”

 

“Well… I didn’t have to promise you food, last time, now did I?” The Music Contributor scowled, pushing at Jay’s chest while he laughed. “ _Oi_ , I was kidding.” He grabbed both of Sloane’s hands, pulling her into his chest. “My dick is that good, huh?”

 

“ _Fuck you_.”

 

“Come with me, and you’ll get the chance to.” he ducked his head, pressing a kiss to her chin. “Hm…? I’ll even let you ride me.” 

 

Sloane scoffed out a laugh, pushing at the singer’s chest. “Shut up. You were gonna let me do that, regardless.”

~

About three hours later, Sloane was in Jay’s bed for the second time, something that was unheard of. She figured it was okay since Jay seemed to be well versed in that hip rolling thing he did. It wouldn’t happen again, that, Sloane was sure of.

 

“Tired?”

 

“Mhm…” The Music Contributor snuggled into Jay’s chest, half-asleep. Instead of the promised diner, the CEO ended up taking her to a hole-in-the-wall Italian joint that served  _amazing_  Pasta Puttanesca. Now, they were back in his hotel suite, spent after four rounds. “lemme sleep for five more minutes.”

 

“I don’t know if I can do that, Doll.” Jay pushed Sloane on to her back, rolling his hips into hers. “The thing is, I keep thinking about how you looked  _really fucking good_ , tonight.” He pushed into her slowly, filling her up, and making them both groan. “And how you’re so good at squeezing my dick  _just right_.”

 

“Yeah?” Sloane gave Jay a sleepy grin, wrapping her legs around his waist. “Am I that good, baby?” 

 

The singer hissed, snapping his hips forward. “You have no idea.” Sloane’s back arched, her mouth falling open in a silent moan. “I could stay like this for the rest of my life.”

 

Sloane let out a breathless chuckle, threading her fingers through Jay’s wavy hair. “That’s some proposal.” She dug her heels into the CEO’s back, a silent urge to go faster. “What’s in it for me?”

 

Jay pushed himself up on to his knees, taking Sloane’s and pushing them towards her chest. “All you have to do is tell me what you want, Doll.” He fucked into the redhead brutally, the new angle allowing him to go deeper than before. “ _Hm_ …? I’ll give you anything.”

 

“Yes—  _oh_.” Sloane could feel her climax building and flexed her hips. “Those… those are big words.” 

 

“Are you really doubting me, Doll?” Jay let go of Sloane’s legs, draping himself over her body. The singer’s hips slowed, (much to the redhead’s dismay), rolling into hers expertly. Sinfully, almost. “You think I won’t deliver?”

 

“Corny.” Sloane giggled, using her hold on Jay’s hair to pull him in for a kiss. “You probably use those lines on all the women you bring home.” 

 

Jay growled at the insinuation, biting down on Sloane’s bottom lip. “Is that what you think?” he pulled out of Sloane completely, then slammed back inside, making the Music Contributor cry out. “ _Ani_ , use your words, baby.” 

 

“I’m close—” Sloane gasped, tugging on Jay’s hair desperately. Jay rotated his hips, latching his mouth on to the junction between the red head’s neck and shoulder. “I’m gonna cum, I’m gonna—  _oh my God_.”

 

“Mhm… shit.” Sloane was moaning incoherently through her orgasm, lifting her hips to meet Jay’s thrusts. It didn’t take long for the singer to lose his rhythm. “ _Fuck_ —” He emptied himself into the redhead with a loud groan, his hips stuttering. 

 

Sloane gave the singer a tired smile, giving his hair a playful tug. “You have really good control of your hips.” 

 

“Yeah?” Jay grinned into their kiss, licking into Sloane’s mouth eagerly. “Is that your way of saying you want to spend the night?” he pulled out slowly, making her moan. “Hm? I make a mean breakfast scramble.”

 

“I have work in the morning.” Sloane watched, her eyes already half shut, as Jay rolled out of the bed and padded towards the walk-in bathroom. He didn’t bother putting on any clothes. “I should probably be going.”

 

Jay emerged from the bathroom, a damp cloth in hand. “Tomorrow’s Sunday, Doll.” he kneeled down at the foot of the bed, crawling in between Sloane’s legs. “Even I don’t have to work.” 

 

“My articles are in high demand.” Jay let out a distracted hum, using the washcloth to pat down the redhead carefully. “Besides, the music never—  _fuck_ , that feels good.”

 

“Yeah?” the cloth was replaced with the CEO’s fingers. “Stay the night, and I’ll make you feel even better.” Jay stroked Sloane slowly. Teasingly. “Then, I’ll make you breakfast.”


	3. III.

_Cliché - an overused expression._

~

Okay. Sloane ending up pregnant was to be expected, really.

 

Shit happens, you know? And, it wasn’t like condoms and the pill were one hundred percent— it was more like Sloane was doubly unlucky. And, if the Music Contributor was oblivious and hadn’t noticed anything until she missed her third period, then so be it.

 

“Are you really not going to tell Jay about the baby? Seriously?” Raina was sitting on Sloane’s desk, eating a bag of chips, and watching her bestie type away on her MacBook. “Damn. This is how all the good soap operas start.” 

 

“No. And you better not, either. The same goes for Simon.” The Music Contributor finally grew tired of writing and pushed away from her desk. “Besides, it’s not that big of a deal. You’re acting like I’m not perfectly capable of raising a kid on my own.”

 

Raina waved her hand dismissively. “Oh, right. It’s not like you’re purposely depriving people of very significant relationships, or anything.” 

 

“Spare me the lecture, please.” Sloane’s been spending her spare time eating everything she came across, only to throw it up later, so she could really do without the guilt trip. “It’s not like Jay was going to be that active in the baby’s life, anyways. He lives in Seoul, South Korea full-time.”

 

“That doesn’t mean the guy should have a free pass on paying child support.” At Sloane’s withering glare, Raina relented. “ _Fine_ , fine. I won’t say anything else about it.” She hopped off the desk, brushing imaginary crumbs off the back of her skirt. “Are you hungry? Let’s have Mexican for dinner.”

 

“ _Fuck_ — I’d kick a very small child for some guacamole.” Sloane stood up as well, adjusting her top. Her tiny baby bump had become more pronounced in recent months, and it was still kind of weird. “Can we go to that place on 25th and Broadway?”

 

Raina squealed, linking their arms together. “Uh, _yes_! Partly because you’re knocked up, and partly because I love that place.” Sloane grinned, letting her best friend lead her out of the office. 

 

The walk to the restaurant was fairly uneventful, save the slight waddling and swollen ankles on Sloane’s part. “Do you think they’ll make me fresh tortilla chips if I ask nicely?”

 

“Sloane.”

 

Sloane recognized the voice, but Raina was the first to turn around. “Oh shit, we’ve just hit  _telenovela_  status.” The Music Contributor looked down, making sure that her baby bump was covered, then turned around. 

 

“Jay, hi.”

 

The CEO was leaning on the wall next to the door to the Mexican Restaurant, arms folded over his chest. The guy did  _not_  look amused. “We need to talk.”

 

“I’m actually in the middle of something—”

 

“I won’t take long.” 

 

Raina, looking slightly uncomfortable, unhooked her arm from Sloane’s, heading into the restaurant. “Okay, well… I’ll get us a table, Sloane. And I’ll ask them about the chips!” before Sloane could protest, the blonde was gone. Traitor. 

 

“You’ve been ignoring my calls for nearly two months.” Sloane opened her mouth to retort, then snapped it shut. It was kinda hard to dispute the truth. “And don’t give me that bullshit about being busy. You were avoiding me.”

 

“I don’t know what you want me to say.” Sloane, not really thinking, folded her arms over her stomach. “I told you that I wasn’t interested in a relationship.  _Jesus_ , I don’t know how many times I’ve told you that—”

 

“ _Fuck_.” Jay was staring down at Sloane’s stomach, his eyes almost comically wide. “You were the last person I expected to get knocked up—”

 

“ _Oppa_!” a woman (one with a banging figure, no less), ran up to Jay, throwing her arms around his neck. Not surprisingly, the first thought to pop up in Sloane’s mind was that this girl had to be some type of model. “I’m sorry; traffic was awful.” She pressed a kiss to the corner of the singer’s mouth. “Were you waiting long?” Sloane scoffed. 

 

Of course, Jay would be worried about her when he had a whole girlfriend on the side.

 

The CEO grunted, pushing the woman away. “It’s fine, Bora—  _wait_.” That last part had been directed at Sloane, who had been attempting to sneak into the restaurant. “You and I aren’t finished talking.”

 

Sloane shrugged, pushing a strand of her naturally black hair behind her ear. Since becoming pregnant, she hadn't been able to re-dye her hair back to red. “Well, I’ve gotta eat, so…”

 

“ _Oppa_ , who is this?” Bora gave Sloane a curious once-over. “A friend?”

 

The Music Contributor put on her most professional smile, sticking her hand out.  “Sloane Michaels. I wrote that piece on Jay for Dazed Digital a few months back.” 

 

“Oh, I remember reading that! It was really good!” Any suspicion on Bora's face melted away, and she shook Sloane’s hand excitedly. “Bora Yoon. I’m Jay’s girlfriend.” Beside Bora, the singer looked as if he’d swallowed something sour. “Would you like to join us for lunch?”

 

“I’m actually here with a friend.” Sloane didn’t even bother with pretending to be apologetic. “It was nice meeting you, though.” She walked past the couple and into the restaurant, shoulders back, and hoping to God that Raina had already ordered for them both.

~

The banging on Sloane’s front door woke her from a dead sleep. 

 

“Jesus,  _fuck_. Who is that?” Raina sat up first, clutching the side of her head. The two women had been working on some last minute things for next month’s issue of Dazed Digital and had decided to crash at Sloane’s place. “It sounds like the police. Did you get into another fight, Sloane?”

 

“Fuck off,” Sloane grumbled, swinging her legs over the side of her bed. The baby inside of the redhead had been interfering with her sleep for the last few days, and she was pissed at being woken up. “what fight could I have gotten in with all of this fucking belly in the way?”

 

The banging continued. “Make them  _stop_ ,” Raina whined, flopping back down. “it’s our day off, and it’s not even eight a.m.”

 

Sloane waved the brunette off, pushing herself off of the bed before waddling out of the room. The knocking was becoming erratic, and it was sure to bother her neighbors. As soon Sloane made it to the door, she yanked it open, an angry snarl on her face.

 

“What the  _fuck_  is your malfunction?”

 

Jay Park was standing on the other side, his chest heaving with exertion. “We need to talk.” 

 

Sloane threw her hands into the air, already exasperated with the entire thing. “So you decided that banging on my door like a maniac would be the most effective course of action, right?”  the singer shrugged, stepping around the Music Contributor, and giving her no choice but to shut the door behind him. “What is it? What couldn’t wait until  _after_  one o’clock?”

 

“That baby isn’t mine.” The redhead felt her eyes grow wide. This was not the direction she expected the conversation to go. “Okay? I’ll get you whatever you need, but you cannot go public with that baby.” The CEO seemed as if he were trying to convince himself more than Sloane. “Fuck, Sloane. _No one_ can know I’m the dad.”

 

“Jesus Christ, _okay_. I get it; you don't want anything to do with the baby.” Sloane looked away, tugging her shirt down over her belly as if she were trying to hide it. “You don’t have to be a dick about it.” She was already pushing five months and felt like a beached whale. Jay plopped down on the nearest couch, suddenly looking exhausted. “I wasn’t planning on telling you, in the first place.”

 

“Wait—” the singer’s head shot up, and he looked surprised. “ _Seriously_?” 

 

Sloane gave a half-assed shrug, feeling her eyes sting. Damned hormones. “Don’t look so surprised; I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself, you know.” The Music Contributor had been planning on denying Jay’s paternity from the jump, but actually going through it was a whole different story. “I don’t need your money.”

 

“Great.” the CEO cleared his throat, looking awkward. “AOMG is finally starting to gain some traction. A baby would ruin me.” Sloane suddenly felt as if she’d been dunked underwater.

 

_A baby would ruin me._

 

“Well… I’m glad we’re finally on the same page, then.” The raven-haired woman gave Jay a stiff nod. “Now you can finally forget about me and go back to Korea with your pretty little girlfriend.”  

 

Jay nodded, looking as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. “I-I… thank you.” he stood up then, heading for the door. “If you ever need anything, though—”

 

_A baby would ruin me._

 

“Go.” Sloane yanked her front door open, ignoring the fluttering in her belly. “Just… fuck you. Go away.” The CEO’s eyebrows furrowed, almost as if he were hurt, and it made Sloane scoff; the audacity. “Seriously. Leave before someone sees you and makes a big deal out of it.”

 

“Shit.” Jay hesitated, his hand going to the back of his head. “You’ll be alright, yeah?”

 

The Music Contributor scowled. “I already told you that I can take care of myself, Jay.” She nodded towards the door. “I don’t need you to worry about me.”

 

_A baby would ruin me._

~

When Sloane was called into her boss’ office, she was almost positive that it was because she was losing her job. Let’s be real: what other reason was there? The raven-haired woman was always late for work, and she always left early. It was simple math. 

 

“You’re being transferred to Dazed Korea.”

 

Sloane’s laugh was disbelieving. “Bullshit.”

 

“I assure you that it’s not.” Dazed Digital’s editor-in-chief, Lynn Evans, was a no-nonsense type of woman, so Sloane couldn’t help but to immediately believe her. “Their editor-in-chief read your piece on a… Jay Park? I don’t remember or care, but they liked your writing style.”

 

“That’s great and all, but I just can’t up and move to South Korea.”

 

Lynn didn’t look up from the form she was filling out. “Even if they agreed to double your current salary  _and_  put you up in an apartment?” at Sloane’s choked gasp, she continued. “They’re also interested in Raina, by the way. It took her less time to say yes.”

 

Sloane sat back in her chair, looking dazed. “Do they… You told them that I’m knocked up, right? I’ll have to go on maternity leave, soon.”

 

“You still have four months until your due date, last time I checked.” Lynn sounded bored, which wasn’t unusual for her. “They know, Sloane. And they’ve agreed to put you on paid leave for a long as you need when the time comes.” 

 

“Okay, I’m arrogant, I’ll admit that.” There was a fluttering in Sloane’s stomach, and she put a shaky hand over it. “But even I know that I’m not  _that_  good of a journalist.”

 

Lynn finally put down her pen, looking up at Sloane. “You’re being offered the opportunity of a lifetime, at literally no cost to you, and you’re complaining about it?” the raven-haired woman's cheeks colored. “That’s unlike you.”

 

“But—”

 

“I’ve already accepted on your behalf. You start in two weeks.” Lynn went back to her paperwork, a smug smile on her face. “It’ll be nice to have a quiet office, for once.”

 

Raina was waiting for Sloane when she walked out of Lynn’s office. “What did you say?” she demanded, grabbing her best friend's arm, and pulling her over to their desks. “You said yes, right? Of course, you did; they doubled our salary.”

 

“Lynn already accepted on my behalf.” Sloane eased herself down onto her office chair, sighing. “She gave me the rest of the day off to pack up my place and make arrangements.”

 

“Me too!” Raina grinned and clapped her hands. “Wait until I tell Ki; he’ll be so excited.” Raina and Kiseok had been exclusive for months now, which consisted of nightly phone calls, never-ending FaceTime sessions, and the Co-CEO flying down every other week to see her (re: dick her down). 

 

“Shit. Do you think we’ll have to learn Korean, now?” Sloane made a face at the thought. “I’ve always been shit with languages, English included.”

 

The brunette shook her head. “Nah, Kiseok will help us.” Wisely, she decided not to bring up Jay. 

 

In the weeks following Jay finding out about the baby, Sloane’s heard virtually nothing from the CEO. All he’s done is send her the bank book for their child’s trust fund (apparently, Jay’s goal was to deny their child in public while making sure they’d never want for anything). Both Jay and Sloane deposited money into the account bi-weekly, and already, it contained nearly $50,000. Sloane planned on using it to pay for the kid's college tuition (should they choose to attend, of course). Other than that, radio silence, which was fine by her.

 

The raven-haired woman stretched her arms “Let’s go back to mine.” With Raina’s help, Sloane was pulled back up to her feet. “We still have to figure out our work visas, and what not.” Internally, Sloane was scowling; it looked as if her chances of bumping into her baby’s father were increasing more than she was comfortable with. 


	4. IV.

_Dead Metaphor - A metaphor that has lost its intensity due to overuse._

~

Okay, yeah; Seoul was pretty badass.

 

Once you get past the language barrier and the borderline rude staring, that is. Of course, Sloane hadn’t even left the airport yet, but she knew she’d like it here. The music contributor didn’t very much like the fact that she was alone, though. Raina, due to her mild case of OCD, stayed behind to make sure that the contents of both of their apartments were properly packed up and shipped over. She’d be flying in next week.

 

Flying didn’t really agree with the little one nestled inside of Sloane, so she was eager to find her driver and head over to her new home. “I should have asked for a picture of the driver, or something.” The raven-haired woman exited her flight’s gate, but stayed near the automatic doors, biting down on her bottom lip nervously. Being nervous was pretty uncharacteristic for her, but it was hard not to feel that way in an unfamiliar country. “ _Fuck_ , I’m so screwed—”

 

Sloane’s eyes had been darting around so quickly, she’d almost missed the sign that bared her name. It was literally one of the only few that were in English. The sign’s holder looked relatively young from what Sloane could tell. He was wearing a stylish, black face mask, and matching Ray-Bans.

 

Feeling slightly suspicious (but not really knowing why), Sloane grabbed the handle of her suitcase and headed over to the driver. “Hi, I guess you’re taking me home?”

 

“Not in the way I’d like to.” Okay, that wasn’t creepy at all. Red flags were literally flashing in front of Sloane’s eyes, but the guy spoke English, and she really doubted her ability to flag down a taxi here. The driver made a grab for Sloane’s suitcase. “Relax, Doll. It’s me.”

 

Sloane’s apprehension immediately melted away to annoyance. “ _Jay_?” the CEO grinned, briefly lowering in shades to give her a wink. That explained her feeling suspicious. “Why are you here?”

 

“I didn’t want you taking a taxi, so I’m taking you home.” The singer turned on his heel, heading towards the airport’s front entrance, and Sloane had no choice but to follow. “You’re welcome, by the way.” Sloane glowered but remained silent for the entirety of the short walk. She suddenly missed New York very much. 

 

Jay ended up leading her over to a sleek, crème-colored, Bentley. While Sloane watched, he tossed her suitcase into the trunk of the car, then jogged over to the passenger’s side to open the door for her. 

 

As soon as Jay dropped into the driver’s seat, the Music Contributor pounced. “How’d you know about my flight?” the CEO shrugged, starting the engine before peeling out of the airport’s parking lot.

 

“Kiseok- _hyung_  told me about you and Raina transferring.” He kept his eyes on the road but turned the radio on. Soon, American R&B filled the silence. “He told me that you were flying in first, so I offered to pick you up.” Sloane, silently grateful, said nothing to that and turned to look out her window.  “I…  _uh_ , I did some research and found a really good OBGYN for you. If you want, we can check it out after you get settled.”

 

“I was under the impression that you wanted nothing to do with my baby, and by extension, me.”

 

Jay let out a long-suffering sigh, and Sloane scoffed to herself. Like he had anything to sigh about. “Sloane…”

 

“Does she know?” the Music Contributor turned in her seat, glaring at her baby’s father. She found out that Bora was an idol/model a few weeks back, and may or may not still be a little bitter about it. “Be honest; does your girlfriend know that you knocked me up?”

 

“Bora knows.” Jay bit out, the tip of his ears bright red. “But she’s not my girl, so it doesn’t really matter how she feels about it.”

 

“She’s not your girl.  _Right_.” Sloane rolled her eyes, turning so that she could glare out her window again. “Could have fooled me.”

 

Jay decided to ignore the jib and stopped at a red light. “My place isn’t too far from yours. So if you need anything, call me first, alright? Even if it’s just for a ride. I don’t want you taking taxis or buses.” 

 

“You do realize that I’m a grown ass woman, right?” 

 

“Believe me, I do.” He finally looked over at Sloane’s prominent baby bump, an arrogant smirk on his face, “But you also didn’t bother to learn a lick of Korean, either. Am I right?” Sloane scowled, folding her arms over her chest, and desperately hoping that her baby wouldn’t grow up to be a smug bastard like their father. 

 

Sloane’s apartment turned out to be a penthouse, which was just fine with her. It had five bedrooms (way more than enough to house her and the baby comfortably) and had a really nice view of the Han River. The front door was passcode protected, so she didn’t even need a key. There was literally nothing to complain about. 

 

“Your landlord told me that your things have been arriving all week.” Jay stayed near the front door, his hands shoved into the front pockets of his jeans. “If you want me to hire movers, let me know.”

 

Sloane hummed, not bothering to move from her spot on the couch. Someone had taken the time to fully furnish the place with really comfortable shit. “Sure.”

 

“But I want to set up the nursery myself.”

 

“You’re going above and beyond for a baby that you don't even want.” When Sloane tried to catch Jay’s gaze, he pointedly looked away, jaw clenched angrily. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll figure something out.”

 

“Your fridge is stocked, but if you don’t feel like cooking, I left the number to a few English-speaking take-out joints.” Sloane narrowed her eyes; when, exactly, did Jay have a chance to do all of that?

 

“Thanks.” The music contributor gave up on willing Jay to look at her, and let her eyes close. “That Bora is a lucky girl.”

 

“Don’t, Sloane.” There was the sound of the front door opening. “I can drive you to the doctor next Thursday. I’ll set up the appointment.” And then the front door slammed shut. 

~

“Sloane, hi.”

 

Sloane was halfway through a jar of chunky peanut butter mixed with Nutella when Bora finally paid her a visit. The pregnant woman couldn’t say that she wasn’t expecting it. The idol had been perfectly nice during their first meeting, but Sloane peeped the way she dug her claws into Jay. It was only matter of time before Bora came around, attempting to assert her dominance. 

 

“Bora,” the Music Contributor stepped to the side, allowing Jay’s girlfriend(?) to enter the apartment. “What’s up? I wasn’t expecting to see you.” Sloane wiped her hands on the leg of her joggers; she hadn’t been expecting to see anyone, for that matter.

 

“Well, I wanted to drop by and see how you were settling in.” Bora found a seat on a nearby couch, but Sloane stayed near the door. “I just came from Jay- _oppa_ ’s place. He doesn’t live too far away from here.” The way she casually (too casually, really) dropped that piece of information made Sloane smirk.

 

The raven-haired woman took the couch across from Bora, grinning. “You didn’t have to go out of your way like that.” The baby kicked, and she flattened a hand over her stomach. “Raina’s here, now, and we start work next week. I’ll be fine.”

 

“Good. That’s… good.” Bora hummed, her eyes trained on Sloane’s belly. “How far along are you, now?”

 

“Five months, next week.” Sloane caressed her stomach carefully, an uncharacteristically soft look on her face. “I was thinking about asking for the sex at my next doctor’s appointment, but I don’t know. I kinda want it to be a surprise.”

 

“Jay- _oppa_ … he’s really excited about the baby.” Bora cleared her throat, suddenly looking awkward. “He’s been reading those parenting books cover to cover. And there are baby furniture catalogs all over his apartment. It’s adorable.” 

 

Sloane narrowed her eyes slightly. “I don’t know why. He doesn’t even want the baby.” This conversation wasn’t going the way she thought it would, and it was lowkey freaking her out. “I figured you, of all people, would be pretty unhappy with the current situation.”

 

“Well… it happened before  _oppa_  and I were together, so there isn’t really anything for me to be unhappy about.” Bora’s left eye twitched.  _Yikes_. “And it’s not like you two are still fooling around, right? You’ll just be seeing a lot of each other for the next… eighteen years or so.” 

 

Sloane raised an eyebrow. “Right. Well, thank you for checking up on me, Bora.” She stood up slowly, heading for the front door—

 

“ _Wait_.” Bora stood up as well.  “You won’t… you and Jay- _oppa_  aren’t fooling around, again. Right?” Sloane let out an amused snort.

 

“Yeah. Like Jay would even want my fat ass when he has you.” the baby kicked, almost as if they were disagreeing with their mom. “You have nothing to worry about, Bora.”

 

Jay’s girlfriend ((?) Honestly? Who knows?) didn’t look convinced. “It’s just that… I really like  _oppa_. And, even though he doesn’t show it, I know he’s still hung up over you.” The model wrung her hands together nervously. “And now that you’re having his baby… I just want my chance with him.”

 

“I understand completely.” Sloane gave Bora a polite smile, even though she suddenly felt like throwing up. “There’s nothing going on between me and Jay, and there never will be.”


	5. V.

_Epigram - A short witty poem, usually makes a satiric or humorous point._

~

“I’m impressed.” Sloane was sitting at her vanity, putting the finishing touches on her makeup for the day. Raina was lounging on the raven-haired woman’s bed, typing away on her phone. She was waiting for Sloane to finish getting ready so that the two could head over to the AOMG party at Jay’s house. “This could be the worst idea you’ve ever had, Rains.”

 

“Stop being so negative.” Raina looked up from the text she was typing to glare at her bestie. “It’s not like you’re crashing the party, Sloanie. We were both invited.”

 

Sloane set her tube of lip gloss down, rolling her eyes. “Okay, but you’re not the one carrying the child that the host is denying, so...” The raven-haired woman stood up, straightening out her outfit. “And it doesn’t help that all of his labelmates know that Jay and I used to fuck around.”

 

“No one cares about that.” Raina rolled off of Sloane’s bed, huffing slightly. “Tonight is supposed to be about us having fun, alright? It’s our first party since moving to Seoul.” 

 

“How am I supposed to have fun when I can’t even pregame?”

 

The brunette opened her mouth to reply, but was interrupted by her phone beeping, and looked back down. “Oh good; the limo Kiseokkie ordered is outside.” She skipped over to the Music Contributor and grabbed her hand, dragging her out of the bedroom.

 

Fifteen minutes later, the limo rolled to a stop. Jay’s house (mansion would be a more appropriate term) was in a nice neighborhood on the outskirts of Itaewon; the singer wasn’t lying about it not being too far from Sloane’s condo. 

 

“Do you think there will be food?” Raina stepped out of the car first, then helped Sloane out. “You didn’t give me enough time to eat.”

 

“You act as if you’ve never been here before.” Raina linked arms with her bestie, pulling her towards the front door. “CEO-bae keeps enough food to feed the entire city.” 

 

Sloane groaned aloud, “Seriously, stop calling him that.” The front door was unlocked, and the two women were immediately greeted with loud Korean hip hop. “Fuck, I could really go for some pickles right now.”

 

“Gross.” Raina was walking on her toes, looking for Simon, no doubt. “Go check the kitchen, I’m gonna go find my boo.” Sloane watched her friend disappear into the crowd, a small frown on her face. Of course, she’d be abandoned at her secret baby daddy’s house party.

 

“You’re Sloane, right?” there was a guy leaning on the wall closest to the raven-haired woman, a small smile on his face.” Sloane shrugged, folding her arms over her chest.

 

“Who wants to know?”

 

The guy’s smile morphed into a smirk. “I’m Hyuk, but everyone calls me Dean.” Sloane made a small noise of recognition. 

 

“I’ve heard of you.” She moved over to the wall, closer to Dean. At his raised eyebrow, the raven-haired woman elaborated. “I’m a Music Contributor over at Dazed Korea. You have a unique sound.”

 

“That’s, uh— thank you.” Dean let out an awkward little laugh, his hand going to the back of his head. “I didn’t think someone so pretty would be interested in my music.” Sloane grinned.

 

“Flattery will get you everywhere in this industry. Remember that.” Her hand went to her belly unconsciously, something that’s been happening more often since her baby bump’s become more prominent. “You wouldn’t happen to know if there’s any food here, would you?”

 

“Uh, yeah; there’s some Western food in the kitchen.” Dean was staring down at the raven-haired woman’s stomach, a funny look in his eye. “How far along are you?”

 

“Five months.” Sloane pushed herself off the wall. “And if I’m being honest, this party is the last place I should be.” 

 

Dean laughed, standing up straighter. “Well, I’m glad you came.” He took Sloane’s hand, leading her into the crowd. The pair was in the kitchen in no time, where it was noticeably quieter. “I think what Jay- _hyung_ ’s doing to you is fucked up.”

 

Sloane, who had her head buried in Jay’s refrigerator, froze. She straightened up as quickly as she could, turning to face the singer with a jar of pickles in her hand. “What do you mean?”

 

Dean gestured to the raven-haired woman’s belly. “The baby. It’s Jay's, right?” At Sloane’s tentative nod, the singer continued, “I heard him talking to Simon- _hyung_  about it. Is he really denying his own kid to protect his career?” 

 

Sloane raised an eyebrow, kicking the refrigerator door shut with her foot. “This is heavy talk for a party.” Dean blushed bright red. 

 

“Sorry,” he stuffed his hands into his pocket. “I saw you, and I just— it makes me so angry, knowing what he’s doing to you. You and your baby doesn’t deserve that.” Sloane couldn’t help but agree, considering.

 

“Well, since we’re already talking about this,” she hopped on to a nearby counter, crossing her legs at the ankle. “You should know that I already planned on keeping the baby from Jay before all that denying business came along. I figured it would be easier since I was living in New York, at the time.”

 

 Dean didn’t look even the slightest bit surprised, “Ah, well—”

 

“Sloane?” Jay walked into the kitchen, shirtless (who the fuck even knows why) and double fisting 40s. Sloane didn’t even know 40s were sold in South Korea. “I knew I saw you walk in here.” he glanced over at Dean and raised an eyebrow. “Dean.”

 

The Music Contributor shrugged, “Yeah, well, a girl’s gotta eat.” She gestured to her slightly protruding stomach. “Especially when there’s another mouth to feed.”

 

Jay blushed, heading over to a cooler in the corner of the room. Instead of grabbing another drink, the singer sat down on top of the cooler, setting one of the 40s down on a nearby counter, and taking a swig out of the other. “I didn’t think you’d show.” he gave Sloane a once-over, licking his lips. “ _Oi_ , aren't those heels too high?”

 

“First of all, fuck you.” The Sloane scoffed, going back to her (Jay’s) pickles. “Second, why bother wasting an invitation on me?”

 

“It wasn’t my idea; Bora sent out the invitations.” Sloane rolled her eyes. Of course, she did. “Look, I was hoping we could talk—”

 

“Nah, I don’t want to.” Sloane looked up, a small smirk on her face. “I don’t want anyone to see us and get the wrong idea. Might ruin your career, or something.”

 

Jay’s face paled, and he chanced a glance at Dean. “Sloane, let’s talk somewhere quiet, okay? We can go up to my room—”

 

“I said no, Jay.”

 

 Dean cleared his throat, looking thoroughly unimpressed. “Jay- _hyung_ , I don’t mind keeping Sloane company, if that’s what you’re worried about.” It was the singer’s polite, passive-aggressive way of dismissing the other.

 

The tips of Jay’s ears were bright red.  “Ah, really? I wasn’t aware that you two knew each other.”

 

“We go way back.” Sloane reached back into the pickle jar, “So stop worrying about me, and go back and host your party. I’m fine here.”

~

Sloane liked Hyuk as a person, but he kinda ruined a good thing.

 

“What do you think we’re having?” Sloane shrugged, staring out of the passenger window of Jay’s Bentley. The two were on their way to Sloane’s six-month check-up, where they would be learning the sex of their baby. “Okay… have I done something wrong?”

 

_Duh_. Jay had been nothing but a goddamned pest since his house party. He stopped by Sloane’s condo every other day and called her every single night. Seriously. It was just… Sloane didn’t understand what Jay was trying to do, and it frustrated her to no end.

 

“I thought you didn’t want this.” Sloane huffed, turning in her seat to face her baby’s father. “You told me that a baby would ruin your career, right?”

 

Jay winced. “Sloane—”

 

“But here you are, tagging along on all of my doctor visits and spending an assload of money.” She went on as if she hadn’t heard him. “And it doesn’t— it doesn’t make any sense, okay? You really _don’t_ have to do any of this.”

 

“So I’m supposed to just sit back and let you do everything by yourself, right?”

 

“Yes!” There was a small kick to Sloane’s bladder, but she ignored it. “That’s exactly what you’re supposed to do, seeing as this was your idea in the first place. Why do you always make everything so difficult?”

 

The CEO huffed, looking frustrated. “You’re carrying my child; I can’t just ignore that.” he kept his eyes on the road, but there was no mistaking the clench of his jaw. “I can’t believe that you’re bitching at me for taking care of you.”

 

Sloane scoffed, folding her arms over her belly. “Yeah well, excuse me for not wanting my baby to be Jay Park’s dirty little secret—”

 

“Bullshit—”

 

“I’m having a baby, Jaebeom. A tiny, helpless, human being who’s gonna have no choice but to rely on me for the next eighteen years.” There was another kick to Sloane’s bladder, and she could barely contain her wince. “I’m not here for the games, and I couldn’t give less of a fuck about your label if I tried, so you need to make a decision.”

 

Jay groaned. “Sloane…”

 

“I’m being serious. Either you’re in, or you’re out.” Sloane looked down at her nails, faking nonchalance. Inside, the raven-haired woman was lowkey freaking out. She didn’t want any of this. “And if you’re in, there won’t be any of that secret shit.”

 

It was silent for a moment. “Fine.”

 

“I mean it, asshole.” The Music Contributor scowled, dropping her hands into her lap. “I’m not hiding my baby for you— wait, what?”

 

“I’m in.” Jay cleared his throat, looking uncomfortable. “I tried distancing myself, and it obviously didn’t work, so... I’m in. I wanna be in the baby’s life.”

 

“And your label?” Sloane turned in her seat, an expectant look on her face. “I thought a baby would ruin everything.”

 

Jay cleared his throat, looking embarrassed. “That may have been an exaggeration.” Sloane huffed and rolled her eyes; of course, it was. “I was freaking out, alright? After two months of no contact, the last thing I was expecting was to find out that I had a kid on the way.”

 

“Imagine how I felt.” The baby gave Sloane another kick, and she let out a soft moan. “This kid must really hate me.”

 

“What?” Jay took his eyes off the road, giving the raven-haired woman a worried look. “Is the baby coming?”

 

“I’m just not feeling too good, today. The baby decided to play soccer with my kidneys until four a.m. last night, and hasn’t stopped yet.” Sloane huffed, pouting slightly. “Don’t be stupid.”

 

“Really?” Jay took his eyes off the road, an excited look on his face. A stylish, navy blue face mask hung limply around his neck. “That’s good, right? Her being active like that?” The CEO’s interest in Sloane’s pregnancy was adorable— wait.

 

_And now that you’re having his baby… I just want my chance with him_.

 

The grin melted off of Sloane’s face. As much as Jay liked to deny it, he had a girlfriend. A model who really fucking liked him. Sloane may be a self-proclaimed ho', but she wasn’t a homewrecker. 

 

“Yeah.” The Music Contributor turned to look back out the window, again. “It means that they’re growing too fast for my stomach to keep up. You think we’re having a girl?”

 

Jay stopped at a red light. “I’d like to.” Sloane didn’t know it, but the singer was blushing a little. “I think it would be cute, having a little girl that looks like her mama.” Sloane rolled her eyes at that. Corny. “What about you, Doll?”

 

“I’d like a little boy. Less hassle.” The light turned green, and Jay started driving again. “But I’ll be okay as long as the baby’s healthy. And don’t call me Doll.”

 

“You love it.” Jay pulled into the parking lot of the OBGYN clinic. He pulled into the parking space closet to the door, one hand splayed over Sloane’s belly. As if sensing their father’s presence, the baby inside of her began to kick like crazy. “And my baby girl loves it, too. Isn’t that right, Princess?”

 

Sloane pushed Jay’s hand away, rolling her eyes. “You exciting them like that is gonna make me have to pee." The CEO grinned, killing the engine before hopping out of the car. Sloane laughed to herself, undoing her seatbelt and waiting for Jay to jog around and open her door.

 

“Do you think they’ll let us hear the heartbeat, again?” he helped Sloane out of the car carefully, kicking the door shut afterward. By now, the face mask around the singer’s neck had been pulled up to cover his face. “I was thinking about recording it and using it in a song.”

 

“Cute.” Sloane waddled towards the entrance, internally bemoaning her luck. When the fuck did she start waddling? “You’re thinking of song ideas while my ankles swell beyond recognition.”

 

“Maybe if you weren't wearing those death traps on your feet...” the CEO scowled down at Sloane's heels. “What did I tell you about wearing heels, Doll? What if you fall or something when I'm not around?”

 

Sloane rolled her eyes, waving Jay off. Like he had any right to tell her what to do. “You're not offering to take me shoe shopping, so I don't understand the point of this conversation.”

 

Jay chuckled, slipping an arm around Sloane’s waist. “If you wanted me to ball out on you, all you had to do was ask.” the pregnant woman scoffed, pushing the CEO away. “Hm...? Money's not an issue when it comes to you.”

 

“Jesus, you're corny for no reason.” the baby gave her another, playful kick, and Sloane rubbed her stomach. “Besides, new shoes aren't gonna stop my ankles from swelling.”

 

“I offered to carry you, Doll.” Jay opened the door to the clinic, ushering the Music Contributor in first. “You weren't down for it, remember?”

 

“You were offering to carry me bridal style.” Sloane stepped into the air-conditioned building, and let out a relieved sigh. “I’ve already gained ten pounds in my stomach alone. And stop calling me Doll.”

 

“You don’t think I’d be able to carry you?” Jay led Sloane over to an empty set of chairs, blissfully ignorant of the looks they were receiving. “I’m sure I proved that theory wrong the night we conceived our little one.” That last part was whispered in Sloane’s ear, and she shivered. 

 

_AOMG is finally starting to gain some traction. A baby would ruin me_.

 

“Don’t. People are watching us.” Sloane cleared her throat, pushing at Jay’s shoulder. “Go up there and get a clipboard. We have forms to fill out.” The CEO groaned but did as he was told. 

 

As soon as Jay was out of reach, Sloane let out a tiny sigh. Sometimes she really hated being pregnant; who had the time to be getting turned on simply from being touched? While Jay was chatting with the secretary, the Music Contributor took in her surroundings.

 

The only thing that stood out was the staring.

 

Literally, everyone was staring at Sloane, and it got annoying fast. Jesus, black people weren’t aliens. A few seats down, a heavily pregnant woman was openly staring at the raven-haired woman, an awed look on her face. 

 

“ _Christ_ ,” Sloane muttered, crossing her arms over her belly. “Stare any harder, and I might start thinking I’m Beyoncé or some shit.” The CEO sauntered back over to Sloane, seemingly oblivious to the staring. 

 

“We’re a little early for our appointment, Doll.” Jay plopped down into the chair next to the raven-haired woman, balancing a clipboard on his lap. 

 

“If it had just been me, I would’ve been on time.” Happy for the distraction, Sloane reached for the clipboard, a frown on her pretty face. “Give me that—”

 

“It’s all in Korean, Doll.” Jay turned to the side, holding the board just out of Sloane’s reach while he read off of it. “When was your most recent menstrual cycle?” was the first question. “Way before Jay Park hit it, that’s for sure.”

 

“Keep your voice down.” Sloane hissed, only to be met with the singer’s shit-eating grin. “You’re an idiot.”

 

Jay chuckled, throwing an arm over the raven-haired woman’s shoulders. “I didn’t write that down. See?” he showed her the clipboard to prove his point. “Forgive me, Doll?”

 

Sloane rolled her eyes. “Don’t call me that.” Nevertheless, she let herself snuggle into Jay’s chest, and listened while he translated the form for her. Damned hormones.


	6. VI.

_Euphemism - A phrase used in place of something disagreeable or upsetting_. 

~

“I just want you to know that you ain’t slick.”

 

Sloane looked up from her phone to find Raina smirking down at her. Both women were in Sloane’s apartment, preparing to go out for a day of baby shopping.

 

The raven-haired woman squinted her eyes, confused. “Are you going to explain, or…?” she had been in the middle of texting Dean, asking for shopping recommendations. Raina cackled. “Rain—”

 

“You like that Dean guy.” 

 

“Yeah, okay.” Sloane’s phone beeped; the singer had replied with a short list of urban-themed stores with their addresses. “Aside from the fact that that’s completely random, I don’t even know where you got that idea from.” Another beep. This time, it was Jay imploring Sloane to use the credit card he’d given her a few days earlier. The Music Contributor was quick to text the CEO back, telling him to go fuck himself.

 

“Well, for one, you’re smiling at your phone. You never do that.” Raina leaned down, plucking the raven-haired woman’s phone out of her hand. “What are you and that fine ass singer sexting about, this time?” 

 

Sloane scowled, snatching her phone back. “I wasn’t _sexting_ Hyuk. He was just checking up on me and the baby, and I was asking for suggestions on where to shop.” Cue another beep; Jay telling her not to use a taxi, and to let him know if she ever needed a driver. “And I don’t like him.”

 

“Lie again.” Raina plopped down on to the seat next to her bestie, pushing some of her brunette hair behind her ear. “You two have been mighty domestic, lately. Even Kiseok’s noticed.”

 

Sloane made a show of widening her eyes. “Oh my God— even _Kiseok's_ noticed?”

 

“Fuck you.” Raina scowled, folding her arms over her chest.

 

“I’m pregnant with another man’s baby, Rains.” the baby kicked, and Sloane rubbed the top of her stomach. “I’m sure that’s a deal-breaker for any man, no matter what country we’re in.”

 

Raina groaned. “Don’t do that, Sloanie. Let yourself be happy, for once.”

 

“Me being realistic doesn’t mean I’m unhappy.” Sloane’s phone rang, and she answered it, putting it on speaker. “Hyukkie? Are you calling to give me more recommendations?”

 

“Maybe I just wanted to hear your voice. It’s almost as pretty as you are.” There was loud, trap-sounding music in the background. “And I also wanted to know if you needed a driver. I can send one over if you like.”

 

“I’m not a child, you know.” Sloane did her best to ignore the smug look Raina was giving her. “Those stores you texted me— am I going to be able to afford anything?”

 

“Jay- _hyung_ was just talking about how he sent you a credit card. Use that.” Sloane could almost visualize Hyuk’s shrug. “That’s what it’s for, after all.”

 

“I don’t need that asshole’s money.” There was a pretty frown on her face. “He only gave me the card to keep me from contacting him about the baby. Not that I was ever doing that, to begin with—”

 

“Dean!” Raina sang into the phone, mushing her face next to the raven-haired woman’s. “Are you at the studio? Where’s my boo?”

 

“He’s in the booth, laying down some verses. I can tell him to call you after if you want.” There was some shuffling on the other line, and Sloane pushed Raina’s face away. “You’re taking care of my babies, right?”

 

“Always.” Sloane scowled; like she needed anyone to take care of her. “You should come out and shop with us. We could use a guy’s opinion.”

 

Hyuk hummed thoughtfully. “I’d say yes, but I have to see if I can sneak out of here, first.”

 

“Don’t go getting yourself in trouble, now.” Sloane scolded playfully. “Raina and I are very slow shoppers, so just hit us up when you finish.”

 

“Nah, I’m still gonna sneak out. I wanna buy the baby his first pair of designer shoes.” Sloane scowled; her kid was already a brat, and he wasn’t even here, yet. “Shit, I gotta go. Have fun, guys.”

 

Sloane hung up the phone, trying her best to ignore the shit-eating grin Raina was giving her. “We’ll just call a taxi.”

 

“Don’t ignore me, bitch.” The brunette helped her best friend on to her feet. “Dean’s referring to you as his baby, now? You sure y’all ain’t fucking?”

 

Sloane huffed. “Of course I’m sure.” She waddled over to the front door, throwing it open. “Do you honestly think I’d be this miserable if I was getting good dick on the regular?

 

Raina grinned, following Sloane of the apartment, and to the elevator. “What’s stopping you? Dean’s made it pretty obvious that he’d be down for it.”

 

“I am not having that conversation again, Rains.” The elevator dinged, then opened, and Sloane stepped inside. Raina followed, pouting. “The only thing I need to focus on right now is my baby. I don’t have time for romance.”

~

Sloane wasn’t an idiot.

 

She knew that she needed to see her new boss at Dazed Korea. All of these accommodations weren’t adding up. Something was off, and Sloane was positive that Jay had a hand in it.

 

Sloane carefully lowered herself into the backseat of the taxi, then handed the driver a slip of paper. “Can you take me here?” She had been able to write down the address of Dazed Korea with the help of her doorman.

 

The taxi driver looked over the paper quickly, then handed it back. “ _Neh_.” Once they were on the road, Sloane sat back with a sigh. Even though she had to sneak out of her own apartment so that Jay wouldn’t find out, it felt really good to be independent again. 

 

About fifteen minutes later, the taxi rolled to a stop in front of a nondescript looking building, then gestured to his meter. Sloane got out first, waddling over to the passenger’s side so she could hand the driver her card. It was a lot easier than trying to deal with foreign dollar bills.

 

Navigating her new workplace was a lot easier that Sloane expected it to be. Everything was labeled in both Korean and English. After a brief conversation with the help desk attendant, Sloane was directed to the editor-in-chief’s office on the fourth floor. 

 

As it turns out, the boss had been expecting her.

 

“I’ll admit, when I first got the call from your sponsor, I was a bit skeptical.” The editor-in-chief, Namkyu (Nick, if you knew what was best for you), guided Sloane over to one of the chairs in front of his desk. “But that punk offered me quite the deal.”

 

Sloane plopped down into the chair rather ungracefully, resisting the urge to kick off her shoes. “I wasn’t told anything about a sponsor.”

 

“I assumed as much.” Nick reached into the mini-fridge behind his desk, taking out a bottle of soda that he offered to Sloane. “I was instructed to keep everything hush-hush until the deal went through.”

 

The raven-haired woman narrowed her eyes. She did not like where this was going. “So all of these amenities—”

 

“His idea. Your sponsor's footing the bill, but wants us to take the credit.” Nick took out another soda for himself. “In exchange, he’d give the magazine exclusive access to him and his label for the next year and a half.” Sloane’s jaw dropped. “We didn’t have anything to do with the condo. That was all him.”

 

“All who?”

 

“You honestly didn’t know?” Sloane only glared. “It was Simon Dominic. From AOMG.”


	7. VII.

_Fair Use - Reproduction of short excerpts from a copyrighted work for educational or review purposes. This does not infringe upon the writer’s copyrights._

~

Sloane’s phone started ringing as soon as she left the Dazed Building. Three guesses as to who it was. “What.” 

 

“You’re not at your apartment, Doll.” If Jay heard the attitude in Sloane’s voice, he didn’t bother commenting on it. The CEO had grown used to her hormone-induced temper tantrums. “The doorman said that you went out?”

 

“Stop calling me Doll, asshole.” Sloane’s taxi pulled up in front of her, and she got in, handing the driver the slip of paper with her address on it. “I just left my new job. You tricked me into moving out here, and made poor Kiseok do all the dirty work.” 

 

The other line was silent for a moment. “Tell me where you are, Sloane. I’ll come get you.”

 

“Go fuck yourself.” Sloane ended the call, then shoved her phone into her bag. Of course, the phone immediately starting ringing again, but the raven-haired woman simply ignored it. She’d  _never_  been this angry before. 

 

Before long, the taxi came to a stop in front of Sloane’s apartment. Same as before, Sloane exited the car, then handed over her debit card through the passenger’s window. Once the transaction was complete, the Music Contributor started a slow waddle up to her apartment. 

 

When Sloane finally got inside of her penthouse, she found Jay lounging on her couch.  _Of course_. She ignored the singer at first, slamming the front door shut before heading in the direction of her bedroom. 

 

“Sloane.” The raven-haired woman stopped walking but didn’t turn around. Jay let out a heavy sigh, standing up. “… it was the only way I’d be able to be in the baby’s life. I’m not apologizing for that.”

 

“Do you even realize what you’ve done?” Sloane turned around, ignoring the well-aimed kick to her spleen in favor of glaring at her baby’s father. “My boss thinks I’m some airheaded, American  _groupie_  who fucked her way into a well-paying job—”

 

“Sloane—”

 

“You know what he said to me?” She went on as if the CEO hadn’t spoken. “His exact words were ‘ _I would have never taken you if it weren’t for that deal_ ’.’ My reputation is shot, Jay, and I haven’t even started yet.”

 

Jay looked pained. “I’m trying.”

 

Sloane scoffed. “Yeah, okay.” The baby kicked again, and she splayed a hand over her stomach. “And the penthouse? All you, right?” Jay looked away, his cheeks reddening. “Unbelievable.”

 

“What do you want me to say?” he plopped back down on the couch, looking exhausted. “If we had done things your way, I wouldn’t get to be in my child’s life at all.”

 

Sloane let out a disbelieving scoff. “Are you kidding me? Two months ago, you were the one who didn’t want anything to do with the baby; this was all your idea!”

 

Jay had the decency to looked shamed. “I— that was a mistake. I didn’t mean it.”

 

 “Oh… that’s supposed to make everything better, right?” Sloane reached into her bag, pulling out her wallet. She pulled out the credit card Jay had given her and threw it at him. “Fuck that, and fuck you.”

~

These days, if Sloane wasn’t at work, then she was at home.

 

Her new life was a far cry from the one she had in New York, but what could she do? Simply walking down the hall to her bedroom winded the raven-haired woman, how could anyone honestly expect her to go out?

 

Speaking of which, the obnoxious knocking on the front door was making it really difficult for Sloane to nap. The baby preferred to do all his kicking at night, so the raven-haired woman liked to get some rest whenever she could. 

 

“Someone better be dead,” Sloane mumbled, pushing herself up into a sitting position and rubbing her eyes. Standing up took a lot more work than it used to, so the knocked had amped up into a loud banging by the time Sloane got to her feet. “I hear you, damn.” She yanked the door open.

 

“Why’d you change your passcode?” Raina whined, stomping her foot petulantly. “I thought you weren’t mad at me, anymore.” After everything with Jay and Dazed Korea came to light, the fact that Raina knew of the plan all along also came out. 

 

Sloane waddled back over to the couch, leaving the door open. She couldn’t really stay mad at her best friend. Sure, the brunette withheld pertinent information, but Sloane’s done worse. A lot worse. “You weren’t the only one who knew the code, Rain.” She sat down slowly, feeling a dull pain in her lower back. 

 

“You should give Jay a break.” The brunette shut the front door softly, kicking her shoes off. “He just wants to be there for the baby.”

 

“So I’m supposed to just forget that he still wants to keep me and my kid his dirty little secret, right?” The Music Contributor scoffed. “That’s bullshit, and you know it.” 

 

“Hey now.” Raina padded over to the couch, taking the seat next to her best friend. “Are you really pouting about this? You’re making twice the salary you were getting back home—”

 

“That’s not the point—”

 

“And you live in a freaking penthouse free of charge!” Raina slapped Sloane’s arm lightly. “Bitch, if Kiseok bought me a penthouse, I’d let him make all my life decisions.”

 

Sloane didn’t bother fighting her grin. “I thought you were already doing that.”

 

The brunette cackled, then got serious. “For real, though. CEO-bae is going out of his way to make sure you and your baby are more than taken care of. A lot of women don’t have that luxury; you, of all people, should know that.” The baby kicked, and Raina grinned. “See? Even little one agrees with me.”

 

“Fine.” Sloane rolled her eyes skyward. “But he’s still an asshole.”

 

“And that’s fine, too.” Raina reached over, rubbing Sloane’s belly. “As long as you get that black card back.”

~

Apologizing was the worst.

 

Seriously. The act of saying sorry is second on Sloane’s List of Unspeakable Acts. Number one is cheating on your spouse, and number three is wearing Spanx. 

 

“Are we going inside, or…?” Sloane sighed, smoothing out the non-existent wrinkles in her outfit. Raina was leaning on the wall next to her, texting away on her cell phone. There was literally no way Kiseok wasn’t the one on the other end of that conversation. The two women were out at Jay’s studio, in an attempt for Sloane to make amends. 

 

“I still don’t understand why I have to be the one to apologize.”

 

“Because,” Raina looked up from her phone. “Jay’s been walking around, looking like a kicked puppy, for nearly two weeks now. And Ki says that it’s depressing all of the other artists.”

 

Sloane rolled her eyes. “Of course I managed to pick out the single, most dramatic man to be my baby daddy.” Suddenly irritated beyond belief, the raven-haired woman pushed the door to the studio open. 

 

Almost immediately, she spotted Kiseok sitting behind a soundboard. The rapper had a pair of headphones on, and seemed to be entirely focused on whatever was coming out of them. That didn’t deter Raina, though. The brunette grinned happily, skipping over to the Co-CEO, and planting herself in his lap. 

 

“ _Annyeong_.” Kiseok gave his girlfriend a soft smile, then pressed a kiss to her cheek. “You should have told me that you were dropping by.” He spun them around in his chair, finally spotting Sloane. “And you brought the Mama Bear.” Sloane gave him the finger. “Always the charmer.”

 

Raina laid her head on the Co-CEO’s shoulder. “Where’s Jay? I brought Sloane here to see him.”

 

“Yeah?” Kiseok gave Sloane a questioning look but didn’t comment further on it. “He’s in the apartment upstairs, I think. Probably taking a nap.” He pointed up towards the staircase, and the raven-haired woman groaned. 

 

As it turns out, Jay was indeed sleeping, clad in only a tank top and skinny jeans. Which is probably why Sloane had so much fun reaching into her purse for a water bottle, opening it, and upending the entire thing over the singer’s head.

 

“What the—  _what the fuck_.” Jay spluttered helplessly, wiping the water out of his eyes. “Sloane?”

 

“Rise and shine, dickhead.” The raven-haired woman looked on, amused, as her baby’s father spluttered helplessly. “Word around town is that you’ve been quite the Debbie Downer.” she folded her arms over her belly. “You’ve been embarrassing me by association.”

 

“You’re kidding.”

 

“I’m not, actually.” Sloane shrugged, waddling over to a nearby chair, and dropping down on to it. “You’re the one who’s fucking up, Jay. You don’t get to mope around like an adolescent girl.”

 

Jay scowled, reaching on to the floor for his discarded shirt. “I made an effort to be in my son’s life, Sloane.” The Music Contributor tried her hardest to keep her face neutral. “You can’t fault me for that.”

 

“ _Bullshit_.” Sloane spat. The baby aimed a light kick to her spleen, but she ignored it. “You didn’t even want the baby two months ago. I can fault you for whatever the hell I want.”

 

The singer let out a humorless chuckle. “You weren’t complaining when I got your salary doubled. Or when I was helping you settle into that expensive-ass penthouse.” He used his shirt to wipe the excess water off his face. “So, go on. Tell me I didn’t do what was best for all of us.”

 

“You’re such an asshole—I didn’t ask you to do _any_ of that. I didn’t even want you around, Jay. I still don't!” Sloane stood up suddenly, feeling her heart clench. Jay was absolutely right, and she hated it. “You know what? Keep feeling sorry for yourself; I don’t give a shit.”

 

“How many times do I have to apologize, Sloane?” she ignored the CEO, heading for the door. Jay stood up, looking incensed, and grabbed Sloane’s elbow when she passed him. “Don’t leave now, Doll. Let’s keep talking about how I ruined your life.”

 

Sloane glared, attempting to shrug Jay off. “Don’t call me Doll.” 

 

“It was fucked up, telling you that I didn’t want to be in the baby’s life, I know that… But I still wanted to be there for you two.” Jay’s other hand went to Sloane’s stomach, and the baby kicked his palm eagerly. “You weren’t going to let me do that, so I had to get creative.”

 

“You’re still a dick.” The Music Contributor let out a little huff. She really did hate apologizing. “I get that a lot of women don’t have the luxury of getting knocked up accidentally and having their baby daddy stick around. I guess… I guess I could have been more accommodating about everything.”

 

Jay smiled a little, then bit his bottom lip. “Yeah?” Sloane scoffed, and the baby gave the singer’s palm another kick. “Our boy seems to have forgiven me. Do you?” the raven-haired woman rolled her eyes.

 

“I’ll think about it.” Jay’s phone buzzed, and he ignored it. Sloane raised an eyebrow. “I didn’t think that there were CEOs who didn’t answer their phones.”

 

“The only people I wanna talk to are right in front of me.” 

 

Sloane let out a long, dramatic groan. “You’re literally the corniest guy I’ve ever met.” Jay scowled but led the raven-haired woman over to the couch he’d been sitting on, and pushed her down gently. “What if it’s your girl?”

 

Jay gave Sloane a half-assed shrug. “She can wait, not that it really matters.” The singer hadn’t taken his hand off of Sloane’s belly, yet. “Why do you keep bringing her up?”

 

“A better question would be: why am I the one who has to keep reminding you about your girlfriend?” Sloane pushed Jay’s arm away. “Need I remind you, I’m not a homewrecker.”

 

“Bora’s not my girl, Sloane.” Jay’s phone buzzed again, only to be ignored. “I’ll… she’ll realize that, soon enough.”

 

Sloane rolled her eyes skyward. “I cannot wait for the day that statement bites you in the ass.” With Jay’s help, she was soon back on her feet. “But, on to more important matters; I’ve been craving pasta for a week, now. Treat me to lunch?” Jay’s grin could have lit up Times Square.

 

“Of course, Doll.” 


	8. VIII.

_Hook - A narrative trick in the lead paragraph of a work that grabs the attention of the readers and keeps them reading._

~

“So,” Jay plopped down on Sloane’s bed as if he owned the place (which, if we were being technical, he did). “I’ve been reading some of those pregnancy books.” From her spot next to him, Sloane shrugged, flipping through an old issue of Dazed Korea. She didn’t understand anything, but it was always nice to be familiar with the work of her employer.

 

“Am I supposed to… I don’t fucking know—  _congratulate_  you, or something?” 

 

Jay went on as if he hadn’t heard her. “I learned that a pregnant woman’s sex drive is supposed to be really high.” Apparently, in an attempt to be more accessible to the mother of his child, the CEO had decided to lighten his schedule load. As expected, his hanging around quickly became old. 

 

Sloane looked up from her magazine. “Are you going to follow through with a point, or…?”

 

“You haven’t been horny?” Jay looked disappointed. “Like, at all?”

 

“And if I had been?” The raven-haired woman scoffed, going back to her magazine. “Why are we even having this conversation?”

 

“You know…” Jay shrugged, the tips of his ears reddening. “I just wanted you to know that… if you ever have any urges, you can always come to me.”

 

The Music Contributor smirked, flipping through her magazine. “Thanks, but I’m pretty sure I can still pick up a guy if need be.” The smile dropped from the singer’s face. Obviously, that wasn’t the answer he expected. Or wanted.

 

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

 

“Um, I don’t know… what do you think?” finally bored of looking at pictures, Sloane threw the magazine over her shoulder. “If I ever have the urge to be fucked, I’ll go out and find someone to do it. Simple as that.”

 

Jay grinned. “You’re fucking with me, right?” at Sloane’s half-assed shrug, the smile slowly slipped from the singer’s face. “Doll—”

 

“It’s really not that serious.” The raven-haired woman fell backward on to her bed, her hand going to her belly. She rubbed the top of her baby bump in a calming motion, willing her baby boy to go to sleep. She and Jay had found out what they were having at her last check-up, and the Music Contributor couldn't help but be a little smug about it. “I used to do it all the time.”

 

“Yeah, but that was before you got pregnant with _my_ baby.”

 

Sloane let out a soft ‘ah’ sound. “Your baby. Right.” Her head lolled to the side. “Jay, me having sex won’t affect the baby. You know that, right?”

 

“Fuck that.” Jay was glaring down at the Music Contributor, his chest heaving slightly. His phone vibrated, but he ignored it. “If you think that I’m gonna let you—”

 

“ _Let me_?” Sloane's lip curled. “We may be having a baby together, but that’s as far as your influence goes with me. Don’t forget that.” The CEO scoffed at that. “I’m serious, Jay.”

 

“It’s Dean, right?”

 

Sloane had already gone back to her magazine. “What’s this about Hyuk?”

 

“So it’s _Hyuk_ now?” Jay spluttered angrily. “What the fuck, Sloane? I work with him!”

 

Sloane rolled her eyes. “What does that have to do with me? I’m not even fucking the guy. Yet.”

 

It was quiet for a moment. “I’m starting to get the feeling that you don’t understand our situation, Sloane.” He moved quickly then, straddling the raven-haired woman’s legs. “You won’t be fucking anyone but me.”

 

“You have got to be the corniest guy I know.” Sloane rolled her eyes but didn’t make any moves to push Jay off of her. She simply didn’t have the energy. “You ain’t runnin’ shit.”

 

“Oh, I’m not, huh?” the singer placed both of his hands on Sloane’s stomach, and their baby’s kicking went into overdrive. “Are you sure?”

 

Sloane smirked. “I don’t know, ask your girl.”

 

Jay let out a dramatic groan, tipping his head back. “ _Why_  do you keep bringing her up?” 

 

“Because she’s your girlfriend, Jay.” Sloane wiggled awkwardly until the singer got the hint and rolled off of her. “And you don’t even show her an ounce of respect.”

 

“She’s not—” Jay cut himself off, taking a deep breath. “Bora’s not my girl, Sloane. I don’t know how many times I’ve told you this.”

 

Sloane huffed, lifting herself up against the headboard. “You should have told her that before she came to my apartment, then.” Jay, who was (for some unknown reason) in the middle of removing his shirt, paused.

 

“She came here?” the raven-haired woman nodded once. “When was this? Better yet,  _why didn’t you call me_?”

 

“Oh, please.” Sloane waved her hand dismissively, “It’s not like we duked it out, or anything. She just wanted to make sure that you and I weren’t still fooling around.”

 

The top half of Jay’s face was turning an alarming shade of red. “What the fu—”

 

“Bora’s in love with you, jackass.” A sudden pain shot up Sloane’s spine, and she winced. More oft than not, being pregnant sucked. “That’s why I keep reminding you about her. You’ve obviously done something to make her feel that way. And by the look of things, you’re not exactly discouraging her.”

 

“But she’s not the one I want to be with.” Jay’s voice was laced with something Sloane couldn’t identify. She turned her head to the side, studying her baby’s father intently.

 

“Then maybe you should tell her that.”

~

Sloane had to be going insane.

 

Seriously. That was the only explanation as to  _why_  the pregnant woman was currently standing in front of Jay’s house. The house was nestled in a nice (a really fucking nice), upscale suburb in Itaewon, and it was twice the size of the raven-haired woman’s penthouse, which was way more than one person needed. 

 

But why was she there?

 

Sloane hesitated, then raised her fist to knock on the front door. “Raina’s never gonna let me hear the end of this.” She mumbled, feeling the baby inside of her kick lightly. After a few moments of no answer, Sloane knocked again. Eventually, there was the clicking of locks, then the front door was cracked opened. 

 

“Doll? What are you doing here?” At the sight of the Music Contributor, Jay opened the door wider, revealing the fact that he was only wearing a pair of basketball shorts. Sloane's mouth went dry. 

 

“I…” Sloane swallowed thickly, then cleared her throat. “Fuck.” 

 

Jay smirked; the asshole knew exactly what he was doing. “Would you like to come in, Doll?” he opened the door wider, stepping aside so that Sloane could enter the house. She struggled to tear her eyes away from the singer’s many tattoos. “See something you like?”

 

“Don’t call me Doll.” Sloane scowled but stepped into the house, and Jay shut the door behind her. She slipped out of her shoes, sighing when some of the pressure on her ankles disappeared. “Are you busy, right now?”

 

“Never too busy for you.” The CEO led Sloane down a hallway, which fed into what seemed to be a living room. “You should have called, Doll. I don’t want you taking taxis; you know that.”

 

Sloane rolled her eyes, waddling over and sitting down on the nearest couch. “You always seem to forget the fact that I’m a grown ass woman. Stop treating me like a child.”

 

Jay chuckled, perching himself on the armrest of the couch Sloane was sitting on. “What are you doing here, Sloane?” he spoke with the air of someone who already knew the answer. 

 

“Are you really going to make me say it?” Sloane pushed her ink-colored hair out of her face, rolling her eyes. “Because if that’s the case, I’ll just call another taxi—”

 

“Or…” Jay stood, pulling Sloane up with him. “You can walk that pretty ass of yours up to my bedroom.” He hooked a finger under Sloane’s chin, tipping her head back. “Because that’s what you really want. Isn’t it, Doll?”

 

“Ass.” Sloane stood on her toes, closing the distance between the two. 

 

Jay sighed into the kiss, his hands going to Sloane’s waist, and pulling her close. He let the raven-haired woman lead the kiss, his lips melding into hers eagerly, and when breathing became a necessity, he broke away first. “What the fuck took you so long?”

 

“You thought talking about sex was just gonna make me fall into your bed, huh?” the Music Contributor grinned, one of her hands going to the nape of the singer’s neck. “I had to let you sweat a bit.”

 

“Yeah, right.” Sloane let Jay back her into a nearby wall, letting out a surprised whimper when her lower back hit the corner of a picture frame. “I told you that I’d change your mind, Doll.” The CEO picked Sloane up then, making her squeal and wrap her legs around his waist. 

 

“Don’t call me Doll,” Sloane whined, digging her fingers into Jay’s shoulders. “you’re gonna drop me.” The singer only laughed, starting in the direction of his bedroom. By now, Sloane’s belly was more than protruding, but he made it work.

 

“Have a little faith, for once.” Jay kicked the door to his bedroom door open before stepping inside. He hurried over to his bed, dropping Sloane on top of it. “I’d never let anything happen to you.”

 

“Corny.” Sloane teased, reaching out to tug on the waistband of Jay’s shorts. “Come here before I change my mind.”

~

Screaming woke Sloane up. Like, literal screaming.

 

The pregnant woman had slept over at Jay’s again, something she’d been doing a lot over the past few weeks. It was crazy; the closer she got to her due date, the hornier she got. Not surprisingly, Jay didn’t mind it one bit.

 

Sloane sat up slowly, cursing everything; Jay, the baby, her back— she should have just stayed home. The screaming had grown progressively louder and was soon followed by glass breaking. 

 

“Honestly, what the fuck?” Sloane swung her legs over the side of Jay’s bed, using a nearby end table to push herself up. “If that fool’s trying to do laundry again…” She found the CEO’s discarded shirt from the previous night, slipping it over her head before waddling out of the room. 

 

“You never even gave me a chance!” Sloane padded down the hallway, scowling when another glass broke. She suddenly had an idea about what was going on. “You were always panting after her— even after she threw you away!”

 

Bora was standing near the front door, red in the face and wild-eyed. The model was throwing anything she could get her hands on, which explained the noise and the shattered glass all around the room. Jay was leaning on the wall furthest away from his ex, looking more than unimpressed with his arms folded over his bare chest. 

 

Sloane waddled into the living room, a protective hand over her belly. “Jay,” both his and Bora’s heads whipped in her direction. “What’s going on?”

 

“Sloane, there’s broken glass, baby. Stay back—”

 

“Oh, so it’s  _baby_ , now.” Bora mocked; she dropped the vase she’d been holding, and it went crashing to the floor. She then raised a shaking hand, pointing a finger in the raven-haired woman’s direction. “You lied to me. You told me that you and  _oppa_  weren’t fooling around.”

 

The Music Contributor took a step back, startled. Sue her, but she didn’t think anyone should be accused to of lying two minutes after waking up. “Um…”

 

“Don’t talk to her.” Jay reached for Sloane, shielding her with his body. “I already told you that we were over, Bora. I don’t know what else you want me to say.”

 

“Say that you’ll give me another chance!” Bora clasped her hands together, looking desperate. “ _Oppa_ , what if your fans find out? She’s a foreigner— she’s black!”

 

Sloane scoffed, poking her head around Jay’s back. “Oh bitch, you can kiss the blackest part of my ass—”

 

“Stop it, Sloane.” Jay stepped to the side, hiding the mother of his child, again. “You need to leave, Bora.”

 

“ _Oppa_ …”

 

“I’m serious.” Sloane couldn’t see it, but the singer had the meanest scowl on his face. “I don’t want you around me or my family anymore.” Sloane peeked around her baby daddy again, just in time to see the model huff angrily before storming out the front door. 

 

Despite the situation, Sloane couldn’t help but giggle. “Well, that’s one way of waking up.” Jay turned on his heel, glaring at the Music Contributor playfully. “What? I told you that fucking with her was going to blow up in your face.”

 

“It’s not funny.” He placed his hands on his hips, looking around the room helplessly. “Look at this shit. It’s gonna take forever to clean up—”

 

“Don’t worry about it.” Sloane reached up, cupping Jay’s cheek, and drawing his attention back to her. “At least, not right now.”

 

“Sloane—”

 

The raven-haired woman’s soft look quickly morphed into a pout. “I’m serious. Worry about it later.” She let her hand drop to Jay’s arm, and started to pull him back down the hall. “I’m still tired, and you promised to cuddle with me.” It was the pregnancy that was making Sloane so clingy; she was sure of it. 

 

Jay let the raven-haired woman pull him towards his (theirs, but Sloane didn’t realize that yet) bedroom, an amused smile on his face. “I don’t remember that, Doll.”

 

“I bet; you knocked out right after.” Sloane grinned, throwing a wink over her shoulder. “It’s so easy to get you to agree to what I want.” She finally made it to the bedroom, pulling Jay inside before kicking the door shut. “Lay down. And don’t call me Doll.”

 

“Maybe I just like seeing you smile.” The singer did as he was told, backing up until he was in front of the headboard, then throwing his arms behind his head. “Have you ever thought about that?” Sloane rolled her eyes.

 

“You’re so—  _oh_.” Her hands went to her stomach, eyes almost comically wide. “Oh! Jay—”

 

“What is it?” the CEO shot up, crawling over to Sloane. Smiling widely, she grabbed one of Jay’s hands and placed it right above her belly button. “What’s wrong? Is it the baby?”

 

“No— wait for a minute.” Sloane bit her lip, moving Jay’s hand around. Eventually, the baby moved again, and her stomach morphed grotesquely. “Did you see that?”

 

Jay frowned. “Is that supposed to happen?” he pressed into Sloane’s stomach lightly, and the baby kicked back. “There’s not enough room for him.”

 

“Then tell him to come out.” The baby’s kicking was starting to become painful, and Sloane slapped Jay’s hand away. “Stop hyping him up.” Jay cheesed, grabbing the raven-haired woman’s hands and pulling on them until she was standing in between his legs. “What?”

 

“Baby boy’s just excited to see us.” Sloane rolled her eyes but didn’t fight the smile off her face. “Only two more months until we finally get to hold him. Are you ready?”

 

Sloane shrugged, then tilted her head to the side. “Are you?” 

 

“I’m more than ready.” Jay hummed, pulling the Music Contributor on to his lap. It was quiet for a minute, then— “My parents want to meet you.” 

 

“Yeah… no.” Sloane felt her stomach flip, and it had nothing to do with the baby. “Just like relationships, I don’t do ‘meeting parents’.” She tried to stand up, but the singer wrapped his arms around her belly. “Jay.”

 

“You’re the mother of their first grandchild, Doll.” Jay’s breath tickled the shell of Sloane’s ear, and she shivered. Damn hormones. “Do you really think you’ll be able to get out of this?”

 

“Trying never hurt anyone.” Sloane pouted, folding her arms. “Will you hold them off until after I have the baby? They’ll take one look at him and automatically love me.”

 

Jay chuckled, resting his chin on Sloane’s shoulder. “Are you really worried about what my parents will think of you?” Sloane didn’t bother answering. “I’ve already told them everything worth knowing about you. They already love you, Doll. I promise.”

 

Sloane wasn’t convinced. “You say that now, but when it comes time to meet them, I’ll have to hear all about how Bora or some other broad was a better match for you.” she felt Jay’s chuckle more than she heard it. “Stop  _laughing_  at me, what the fuck—”

 

“You’ve been watching too many dramas.” 

 

“Oh my  _God_ —” 

 

“Seriously, stop worrying so much. It’s bad for the baby.” the singer pressed a kiss to Sloane’s cheek. “Besides, I’m sure your parents want to meet me, too.” 

 

The raven-haired woman shrugged, doing her best to avoid Jay’s questioning look. “I wouldn’t know.” she finally mumbled, toying with the hem of her (Jay’s) shirt. “My mom died a few years back, and I haven’t spoken to my dad since I graduated from college.”

 

“Ah… fuck.” Jay turned his head, burying his face in Sloane’s hair. “I didn’t know. I’m sorry, Doll.” 

 

Sloane huffed, leaning forward slightly. She hated talking about her family. “It’s not a big deal.” she made to stand up, only to be held down. “Jay, c’mon—”

 

“It upset you.” 

 

“Shut up.” The Music Contributor scowled, crawling out of Jay’s lap, and on to the bed. “You’re being annoying; I’m going back to sleep.”

 

The CEO grabbed Sloane’s ankle, pulling her back towards him. “We’re not your parents, Sloane. You know that, right?” For once, there was a no-nonsense look on his face. “Hm? Our baby boy’s gonna be the happiest baby in all of Seoul.”


	9. IX

_Voice - The persona that the author adopts to convey his message, which will be reflected in the style of the writing._

~

If there was one thing to know about Sloane, it was that she did not like being rushed. 

 

Like, at all. It was number four on Sloane’s List of Unspeakable Acts. So, when Jay sent Sloane an S.O.S text, demanding that she drop _everything_ and go to his place, the raven-haired woman was understandably disgruntled. Pissed would probably be a better choice of words. 

 

“Dumbass.” Sloane scowled, waddling the short-distance from her taxi to Jay’s front door. “He should be showing up to my place if he wants to see me so badly. It’s not like I’m _eight months pregnant_ , or anything.” 

 

Coming to a stop in front of the door, the raven-haired woman reached into her purse for the key to Jay’s house. Yeah, she had a key. She pushed the door open, making sure to close it behind herself. The last thing she needed was some fan sneaking into the house. “Jay? I’m here, what do you want?”

 

“Sloane- _ssi_?” Bora, looking confused, padded into the foyer, clad in nothing but one of Jay’s dress shirts. Sloane didn’t even think she had underwear on. “What are you doing here?”

 

The Music Contributor narrowed her eyes. She wasn’t sure what it was, but _something_ wasn’t adding up. “I got a text from Jay. He wanted me to come by...?” 

 

“Oh, well you just missed him. _Oppa_ just left for the studio.” Bora giggled then, using a dainty hand to cover her mouth. “I don’t know why he didn’t just stay; he was pretty worn out. Do you want me to take a message?”

 

“No…” Sloane lifted a hand to her chest; she hadn’t been expecting her heart to clench. “No, don’t worry about it. I’ll talk to him later.” Sloane turned on her heel quickly (well, as quickly as she could) and exited the house. Not even five seconds later, Kiseok was calling her.

 

“Mama Bear, how’s life?”

 

“I’m _really_ not in the mood, Kiseok.” Sloane scowled; she was angry at herself for sending the taxi driver on, and currently had no idea how’d she be getting home. The raven-haired woman was also angry at herself for falling for her baby daddy’s act. But nevermind that, now. “What do you need?”

 

“Jay left his phone at home.” Music with a heavy bass was playing on the Co-CEO’s side. “He wanted me to check up on you just in case you needed him.”

 

Sloane let out a disbelieving scoff. “I’m sure he did. Asshole.” 

 

“I feel like there’s a double meaning somewhere in there.” Kiseok teased. He’s grown used to Sloane’s personality. “Hold on for a minute, Jay’s better a dealing with your mood swings, anyway.”

 

“Ki, don’t—”

 

There was shuffling on the other line. “Doll?” Jay sounded out of breath as if he’d been running. “How are you? How’s my boy?”

 

“Fine.” Sloane huffed, walking in the direction of the nearest busy street. “I can’t talk right now.”

 

“What’s wrong? Is your back giving you trouble, again?” Sloane fought the urge to groan out loud. She could never have less than a ten-minute conversation with this guy. “Where are you?”

 

“I’m at your place.” Spotting a yellow taxi not too far away, Sloane lifted her free arm up, waving it around frantically until the car stopped in front of her. “But you were too caught up to even remember that you were supposed to meet me here, huh?”

 

Jay chuckled, which gave Sloane the sudden urge to punch him in the throat. “What are you talking about, Doll?”

 

“Don’t call me Doll, asshole.” The raven-haired woman yanked the taxi door open, lowering herself inside. She handed the driver the slip of paper with her address on it, and he sped on moments later. “You texted me to meet you here, and didn’t even bother showing up! And that bitch Bora just _had_ to greet me in one of your shirts, huh? I bet she wasn’t even wearing panties—”

 

“Bora was in my house?” the playful tone in Jay’s voice was long gone, and Sloane snorted. 

 

“You’ve got a lot of goddamn nerve—”

 

“I’ve been in the studio since last night, Sloane. And _hyung_ wasn’t lying when he said I left my phone at home; I didn’t send you any texts.” Sloane narrowed her eyes. “I’m serious, Doll.”

 

So _that’s_ why something wasn’t adding up.

 

“She’s still there.” Sloane sat back, flattening a hand over her belly. “Apparently, she wore you right out, but you had to go to the studio.”

 

The bass in the singer’s background seemed to get louder. “I wouldn’t do that to you. You know me.” The raven-haired woman rolled her eyes skyward. She did know Jay— that’s what pisses her off. “You’re still at mine, right? I’ll come pick you up.” Sloane’s stomach flipped, and it had nothing to do with the baby. 

 

She tried to play it off by examining her nails. “I’m already in the taxi, Jay.”

 

“You know I don’t want you taking taxis, Sloane.” Jay’s voice was a low growl. “You never _fuckin’_ listen to me—”

 

“Fuck off. How do you think I got here?” the taxi rolled to a stop in front of Sloane’s apartment building; she lived really _fucking_ close to her baby daddy. Too close, if you asked her. “If you’re that worried about it, translate for me so that I can buy a car, asshole.”

 

Jay laughed into the phone, and if you asked Sloane, she would definitely deny that it made her smile. “Yeah, right. You can’t even speak Korean, let alone read it off road signs.” The raven-haired woman handed the cab driver a few bills before exiting the car. “I wouldn’t be opposed to hiring a driver for you, though.”

 

“Please, I don’t need you spending even more money on me.” Sloane waddled into her apartment building, waving to the doorman on the way to the elevator. “So… you didn’t have sex with your ex-girlfriend?”

 

“Of course not.” Jay’s end of the phone had gone quiet; he must have moved to another room. “Was that why you were so angry, Doll?”

 

Sloane scoffed. “ _No_. Stop calling me Doll.” she could almost see the CEO’s grin and couldn’t help but flush. 

 

It was _exactly_ why she’d been so angry.

~

“Doll, just hear me out—”

 

“I said no, Jay. _God_.” Sloane plopped down on to the nearest couch, throwing a hand over her eyes. How was it that something as simple as arguing could make her tire out so easily, these days? “Why are you trying to ruin a good thing?”

 

“A good thing? Are you fucking with me?” For the past few weeks, the CEO had been trying to convince Sloane to move in with him, and his frustration at being repeatedly rejected seemed to have finally come to a head. “Sloane, I shouldn’t have to keep paying for a _penthouse_ that you _don’t use_.”

 

Sloane gasped, mildly offended. “I do use the penthouse!” the baby gave her a hard kick, but she ignored it. “I live here. The baby’s nursery, the same one that you _insisted_ on building yourself, is here.”

 

Jay scoffed, leaning back against the wall closest to Sloane. “You don’t think I built an exact replica of that nursery at the house?” Sloane opened her mouth to retort, but soon realized that she had nothing to say. “See? There’s literally nothing keeping you here.”

 

“But I like it here.” Sloane’s bottom lip poked out petulantly. “You really want me moving around? _I’m eight months pregnant_.”

 

There was a teasing grin on Jay’s face. “I can hire movers, Doll.”

 

“Don’t call me Doll!” Sloane shot up off the couch, surprisingly quick for someone in her current condition. “And don’t think you can keep telling me what to— oh.” There was a sudden, painful cramping in the raven-haired woman’s belly, making her double over.

 

“What?” the CEO chuckled, pushing himself upright. He’d been looking down at something on his phone. “Have you finally run out of things to say?”

 

“Oh, I have _a lot_ to say to you. Sloane waddled off towards her bedroom, grimacing the whole way. “But the baby’s coming, jackass.”

 

Jay laughed loudly. “It’ll be fine— wait, _what_?” he scrambled after the raven-haired woman, tripping over his own feet along the way. “Sloane, you not joking, right?”

 

“Why _the fuck_ would I joke about something like this?” the Music Contributor walked out of her bedroom, carrying her overnight bag. “Are you gonna keep asking me stupid-ass questions? Let me know so that I can get the doorman to call me a taxi.”

 

“No…” Jay came to a stop in front of Sloane, looking like a deer caught in headlights. “The baby’s really coming?” Sloane groaned, letting her head back.

 

“Jay, seriously, what the _fuck_ —”

 

That seemed to kick the CEO into gear. “ _Shit_. Shit, okay.” He reached for Sloane’s bag, hitching it over his shoulder before grabbing her arm. “I’ll call Dr. Han in the car, yeah? Are you feeling any pain, Doll?”

 

“ _Yes_ , dipshit. And I need to be drugged and in my hospital bed by the time my water breaks.” Sloane started a slow waddle out of the penthouse, Jay’s arm wrapped around her waist securely. “So let’s get a move on.”

 

“You’re supposed to be doing those breathing exercises, baby.” Not five minutes later, Jay was zooming down the highway, one hand on Sloane’s belly. “Remember? The ones we learned in the Lamaze classes?”

 

“ _Fuck_ that.” Sloane’s lower belly cramped again (think period cramps times a hundred), and she let out a low moan. “Something is… fuck— something is wrong, Jay. Right? I’m not due for another month.”

 

“You’re fine, baby.” The singer kept his eyes on the road, but there was no mistaking the sudden lurch in the car’s speed. “Baby boy just wants to see us a little earlier than planned. Everything’s fine, Doll.”

 

“That’s easy for you to say.” The pain went away, and the Music Contributor relaxed. “You’re not the one going into early labor.”

 

“Doll—”

 

“Call me Doll one more, _goddamn_ time.” The cramps came back, and Sloane nearly doubled over again. “Jesus, _fuck_ , that hurts.”

 

Jay braked at a red light, then looked over at the raven-haired woman worriedly, running his thumb over her belly. “C’mon, Sloane. You have to do the breathing—”

 

“Why didn’t you run through the light?” the pain was getting worse, something that she didn’t think was possible. “ _Christ_. You’re such a goddamn jackass—”

 

The light turned, and Jay started diving again. “I know it hurts, baby.” He continued to rub Sloane’s belly soothingly. “We’re almost there, okay? Just a few more minutes.” 

 

“This is your fault.” The raven-haired woman closed her eyes, and a few tears slipped out. “I’m like this because of you. I hate you. I hate you so fucking much—”

 

“We’re here.” Jay turned into Asan Medical’s parking lot, pulling into the first available space he found. He killed the engine before throwing open the driver’s door and hopping out of the car. He started to close the door but ended up poking his head back into the car. “I’ll get you a wheelchair, okay? Just stay here.”

 

Another contraction made Sloane grit her teeth. “Hurry. _Up_.” Jay nodded once, a small smile on his face; he slammed the door shut and jogged away. “Shit.” Sloane placed both hands on her stomach, willing the pain to go away. “Shit, _shit_ — _fuck_!”

 

Jay was back in no time, wheelchair in tow. “I’m here, Doll.” He opened the passenger door. “Here, let me help you out.” Sloane scowled, but did as she was told; Jay lifted the Music Contributor up bridal style and lowered her into the wheelchair. “Okay?”

 

“I…” the contraction finally lifted, and Sloane let out a sigh of relief. “I want my epidural, Jay.” The singer hummed, pushing her towards the hospital entrance. “I’m serious. I can’t speak Korean, so you better not let them fuck me over.”

 

“I won’t, baby.” Jay pushed Sloane up to the nurses’ station. There were two people behind the station; a middle-aged woman on the phone, and a young-ish man typing away on a computer. Jay moved around the wheelchair, coming to a stop in front of the male nurse. “Hi, I need to check her into a room.”

 

The nurse didn’t even bother looking up from his keyboard. “Have you filled out a form?” he reached under the desk, placing a wooden clipboard in front of Jay. The name tag pinned to his chest read Kim Daesuk. “After you fill this out, we’ll be able to place your wife into a room.” 

 

Jay opened his mouth to reply, but Sloane beat him to it. She grabbed the clipboard and chucked it at the male nurse’s face, managing to catch him right in the eye. “ _Jesus Christ_ , Sloane—” Sloane ignored him, and her hand went for a nearby coffee mug, but the singer quickly moved it out of the way.

 

The nurse let out an angry squawk, shooting out of his seat, and clutching his face. There was a decent-sized bruise blooming around his right eye. The older nurse beside him hid her laugh behind her hand. “ _Oi_ —”

 

“Listen, you little bitch.” The contractions were getting worse, so Sloane could care less about manners, at the moment. “There’s an entire human being clawing his way out of me; so, you get me a room, or I give that pretty shiner of yours a twin.”

 

Jay gave Nurse Kim an apologetic shrug. “She’s been in a lot of pain.” The nurse turned his angry glare on to Sloane’s baby daddy, but it melted away once the recognition set in. “Her contractions, they’ve been a little more than ten minutes apart, so if you could just check her in…”

 

“Aren’t you—”

 

“Who gives a shit about who he is?” Another contraction wracked through the raven-haired woman’s body, and she doubled over in the wheelchair. “ _Fuck him_ , okay? My goddamn snatch is about to _rip open_ —”

 

“Just give me the clipboard. I’ll stay out here and fill it out.” The singer snatched up the clipboard, already frustrated with the entire thing. “Please… just get her into a room, alright? She’s in a lot of pain.”

 

The nurse scowled but nodded, walking around the nurse’s station. Jay stepped to the side, letting him take Sloane’s wheelchair. “When you’re finished give the form to the attending nurse before coming up to the maternity ward.” He spoke in barely accented English for the raven-haired woman’s sake. “8th floor.”

 

Sloane smiled when Nurse Kim started pushing her, but it fell when she realized that Jay wasn’t following. She motioned for the nurse to stop. “Jay? You’re not coming?”

 

“I’ll be up in a little while, Doll.” The singer was already filling out the forms, so he didn’t look down at Sloane. “I have to finish these, first.” 

 

“You can’t fill them out in the room?” Nurse Kim started to push Sloane again, but she stopped him. Again. This time by digging her feet into the floor. “I don’t wanna be up there by myself.” 

 

Jay looked up from his writing, “I won’t be long, baby. I promise.” he crouched down in front of Sloane, pushing some of her hair behind her ear. “Just let the nurse take you upstairs, hm?” The Music Contributor pouted, but nodded, accepting the soft kiss to her lips. “Try not to have the little one without me, yeah?”

 

Sloane scoffed, lifting her feet back up on to the foot pedals. “Hurry up with those forms, then.” 

 

“I’m on it.” Jay nodded once at Nurse Kim, signaling for him to push Sloane over towards the elevator. “ _Be nice_.”

 

The nurse waited until he and the raven-haired woman were alone in the elevator before speaking. “Are you really dating Jay Park?”

 

“It’s complicated.” Sloane deadpanned, just as another contraction hit her hard; they were getting longer (and a lot stronger) as time passed. “ _Fuck_. Where’s the epidural lady?” the elevator dinged and the doors opened. “Is she meeting us in the room?” 

 

“ _Neh_.” The nurse wheeled Sloane into the first empty room. “Will you be okay with me dressing you, or do I need to call another nurse?” Sloane, who was already standing up, waved her head dismissively. As soon as she was on her feet, her water broke. 

 

“ _Jesus_. I couldn’t give less of a fuck about you being here if I tried.” Nurse Kim balked at the mess, hurrying to help her. “By the way— about your eye.” The raven-haired woman lifted her shirt up and over her head, and the nurse helped her with her pants. “I… these contractions are a bitch.”

 

“I’ve had worse.” The nurse mumbled, folding Sloane’s clothes, and placing them on a nearby plastic chair. He grabbed a nearby roll of paper towels and crouched down to wipe up the puddle of amniotic fluid. “Your dressing gown is on the bed. Put it on before laying down, please.”

 

Sloane did as she was told, letting out a sigh of relief when her contraction finally eased up. “Will you be able to check and see how close I am?” She reached up behind her neck to tie the gown together. “And, I’m still getting my epidural, right? The contractions are closer together, and they’re getting worse.”

 

“The Labor and Delivery Nurse should be in soon.” Nurse Kim stood up, chucking the used paper towels into a nearby trash bin. “We need to get you into bed.” He grabbed Sloane’s arm, wrapping it around his neck. Together, they waddled over to the hospital-issued bed. 

 

“No arguments there.” Sloane lowered herself on to the mattress, letting out a happy sigh. “All I need now is to lose the extra belly.” 

 

Nurse Kim snorted, grabbing a television remote off the end table next to Sloane’s bed. “Give it a couple of hours.” He turned the TV on, and the sounds of some variety show filled the room. “Do you need anything else?”

 

“Jesus… _fuck_.” Another contraction hit Sloane just as she was about to answer. “A rush on that epidural shot, if you can.” 

 

“I’ll try.” The nurse was moving around the room easily, checking Sloane’s vitals, and asking a few questions about her pregnancy. “In the meantime, keep doing the breathing exercises they teach you in those Lamaze classes for me.” Sloane grimaced but nodded once. She wished everyone would _shut up_ about those damn classes.

 

Jay walked into the room then, an excited look on his face. The singer was carrying two overnight bags, and the baby carrier Sloane ordered the previous week. He obviously had gone back to the car, which explained what had taken him so long. “Have I missed anything good?”

 

“Just my water breaking.” When the raven-haired woman’s contraction let up, she let out a deep breath. Jay grinned and nodded; he set down the bags and the carrier down over by the door before taking the seat next to Sloane’s bed. “You called the doctor, right?”

 

“Mhm. I called Raina, too. They’re both on their way, Doll.” He reached out, brushing Sloane’s hair out of her face. Unbeknownst to the couple, Nurse Kim had slipped out of the room quietly. “How are you feeling, baby?”

 

Sloane scoffed. “What do you think? I feel like shit.” Another contraction hit, and she grimaced. The pain was getting worse, but the Music Contributor was getting used to it. “You… _fucking hell_ … you’re not even wearing a mask.” Jay let out a distracted hum, his hand on Sloane’s belly. “Aren’t you supposed to be worried about someone seeing you?”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“I mean the paparazzi, Jay.” Sloane shifted around to try and get more comfortable. It didn’t work. “The nurses at the station downstairs recognized you, and I’m sure they won’t be the last. That doesn’t make you nervous?” 

 

Jay shook his head. “I don’t care about that, anymore.” When Sloane narrowed her eyes, the CEO shrugged, looking unconcerned. “Seriously. I’ve learned my lesson.”

 

“Well, excuse the hell out of me, then.” The raven-haired woman rolled her eyes. “What about your fans, though? Won’t they be upset?”

 

“If they were really my fans, they’d be happy about me starting a family.” Jay leaned forward, pressing a kiss to Sloane’s sweaty forehead. “Nevermind all that; I don’t want you stressing over me, alright? Let’s focus on you and the baby.”

 

“That’s exactly what I’m not trying to think about.” Sloane growled, letting her head fall back on to her pillow. “This shit really fucking hurts, Jay.”

 

Jay bit down on his bottom lip, looking worried. “I know, Doll. I’m sorry.” He brushed some hair out of Sloane’s face. “Once you get that shot, you won’t feel anything, right?”

 

“Yeah, but who the fuck knows where that goddamn nurse is, though.” the contraction eased up, and the tension left Sloane’s body. “I should have never let you touch me.”

 

“You don’t mean that, baby.” The CEO grinned and sat back, running a hand through his hair. “You loved it when I touched you. You wouldn’t be having our baby if I hadn’t.”

 

“Okay, keep telling yourself that.” Sloane scowled down at her belly; her baby daddy was telling the truth. “Why are you always so goddamn corny?” 

 

The door to Sloane’s room opened, and another nurse stepped inside, pushing a cart full of medical-looking instruments. “Miss Michaels, right? I’m Song Jimin.” the nurse closed the door behind herself, flipping through Sloane’s medical chart with a wide smile on her face. She was young, probably around Sloane’s age, and very pretty. “I’m sorry about the wait. I’m the only Labor and Delivery nurse who speaks English around here, and I got caught up in the Neonatal Ward.” She moved around the room gracefully, slipping on a pair of latex gloves as she went.

 

Sloane eyed the woman warily. “You’re the one who’s giving me my epidural shot, right?” Nurse Song giggled and nodded, coming to a stop at the foot of the raven-haired woman’s bed. “Good. These contractions are a bitch.”

 

“So I’ve heard. Spread your legs for me, please.” The nurse pulled up a stool and plopped down into it before her head disappeared under Sloane’s hospital gown. “According to your chart, Miss Michaels, you’re not due for another month. How’d the contractions start?”

 

“I… we were arguing about something.” Jay spoke up this time, looking a bit guilty. “It wasn’t serious—” 

 

“Any amount of stress can cause premature labor this late in the pregnancy. I’m sure your OB told you the same…” The nurse lifted her head, turning her gaze on to Jay, and a flicker of surprise flashed in her eyes. “Mr. Park.” Jay ducked his head, looking chastised, and Sloane’s lip quirked; she liked this nurse a lot more than the one down at the Station. “At any rate, Sloane is dilated enough to receive the epidural shot.”

 

“That’s the best news I’ve heard all day.” The raven-haired woman shifted again, but she couldn’t get comfortable. “But the baby will be fine, right? Even though he’s early?”

 

The nurse hummed, sitting up straight again. “Well, you’re about six and a half inches dilated, so I’ll administer the shot, and it won’t be too long after that.” She took off the latex gloves, tossing them in the trash. “You’ll be able to see Baby Park for yourself.”


	10. X

_Lead- The first paragraph of a manuscript. This is where the “hook” (to grab the reader’s attention) should be._

~

“I can’t believe you’re about to be someone’s mother.” Raina was sitting on the edge of Sloane’s hospital bed, using the television remote to flip through channels. “You, of all the people in the world.”

 

“Fuck you.” Sloane closed her eyes. She and Jay had been at the hospital going on three hours now, waiting for the Music Contributor to fully dilate. An anesthesiologist had passed through the room about an hour earlier, and Sloane was blessedly numb from the waist down. “I’m gonna be a great mom. It’s Jay’s corny ass that you need to be worrying about.”

 

“Yeah, right.” Raina tossed the remote on to the bed. Nurse Song was flitting around the room, attaching all kinds of machines to the raven-haired woman, and the CEO was still parked next to her bed, looking at his phone. “Have you two even decided on any names?”

 

“Nope. If you remember, we were supposed to have another month to decide.” Sloane shrugged, her eyes still closed. “I’ve been thinking about the name Reign, though. I like it.”

 

“Like the weather?”

 

Sloane snorted. “No, bitch. Like a king, reigning over his empire.” She popped one eye open, watching as understanding dawned over her bestie’s face. “It fits because he’ll be my little prince.”

 

“Reign Michaels?” Raina tilted her head to the side, mulling it over. “It is cute.”

 

“Park.” Jay had been on his phone, typing up some emails for work, but he’d been listening in on the conversation. “Park Reign. The baby’s taking my last name.” Sloane scoffed, popping closing her eyes again.

 

“See? Corny.”

 

Nurse Song plopped back down on her stool, still grinning. How someone could be so happy _all the time_ , was beyond Sloane. “Miss Michaels, have you been feeling the urge to push, yet?”

 

“Yeah, for the past hour or so.” The nurse nodded once, ducking her head back under Sloane’s gown. “The epidural helped, though.”

 

“Well, it looks like you’re dilated enough for delivery.” Nurse Song sat up straight, tossing her gloves into the trash can. “I’ll call the doctor for you.” she stood up, heading over to the PA system near the wall. “Room six needs to be prepped for delivery.”

 

“Jesus.” Sloane sat up a bit straighter; things were getting real. Beside her, Jay tossed his phone on the end table next to the bed. “It’s not going to hurt, right?”

 

“I’d like to say no, but delivery is different for everybody.” Nurse Song was moving around again, pulling out all kinds of nasty-looking medical instruments. “For the most part, I’ve been told that it feels as if you’re having a bowel movement.”

 

“And _that_ is my dose of non-medicinal birth control,” Raina stood up, looking a bit nauseous. “Simon and I will be in the waiting room. Good luck with the pushing and what not, sis.” The brunette hurried out of the room, the door falling shut behind her.

 

Jay switched his phone off, shoving it into the pocket of his jeans. “You okay?” the singer leaned over the bed, brushing Sloane’s hair behind her ears.

 

“Mhm.” She gave him a small smile. “Just a bit tired.” Jay hummed, pressing their foreheads together. He had this adoring look on his face, and the raven-haired woman found it hard to look away. “I’m ready to get this over with.”

 

“You’re already doing such a good job, baby.” Jay pressed a hand to Sloane’s belly. The contractions were coming every other minute now, but the epidural had dulled the pain down drastically. Sloane felt nothing more than a dull pressure in her lower abdomen. “Hm…? Pretty soon, we’ll be able to take our baby boy home.”

 

The door to Sloane’s room clicked open (ruining the moment), and her OBGYN stepped into the room. “Miss Michaels, I’m hearing that you’re ready to have a baby. Is that right?” Dr. Han was a slight, older woman with a no-nonsense air about her. Sloane usually had an issue with authority-types, but Jay made a good choice in choosing the doctor. “I thought we agreed to ease up on the stress, _agassi_.”

 

“Blame the baby daddy.” Sloane shrugged, slouching a bit. “He was bullying me when the contractions started.”

 

“ _Oi_ —”

 

“Nevermind that now.” Dr. Han plopped down on to the stool in front of Sloane’s bed, snapping a pair of latex gloves on. Nurse Song went over to Sloane’s vacant side, bending the pregnant woman’s leg at the knee, and gesturing for Jay to do the same. “Mr. Park, your job for today is to keep Miss Michaels calm; do try not to mess this one up.”

 

Jay nodded frantically, digging his fingers into Sloane’s thigh. “ _Neh_.”

 

“Sloane, the next time you feel the urge to push, do it. Okay?” The Music Contributor nodded, biting down on her bottom lip. “Good. Stay calm, alright? This’ll be over soon.”

 

Yeah, right.

 

Since Sloane was hooked up to all kinds of machines, the OB was able to tell when the next contraction would come. “Push, _agassi_.”

 

“I— _fuck_.” The raven-haired woman felt Jay slip his hand inside of hers, and she squeezed it. Tightly. The singer made a strained noise but made no move to pull away. When the contraction let up, Sloane relaxed. “Is it supposed to hurt like that?”

 

Dr. Han lifted her head to give Sloane a sly wink. “Yes. Again, _push_.” Sloane did as she was told, her face twisting uncomfortably. She couldn’t feel her legs, but she could very well feel her cervix being ripped open from the inside out. “Good, Sloane. Breathe for me.”

 

“You’re doing great, baby.” Jay pressed his lips to Sloane’s temple, and she could vaguely feel him grinning against her skin. “Just keep breathing, hm?” 

 

“Fuck the breathing, and _fuck you_ , okay? Stop touching me.” Sloane moved her head away from Jay, panting harshly. Wasn’t the epidural supposed to make things _easier_? “I can’t— I don’t wanna do this anymore. It hurts.”

 

“ _Good_. You’re doing great, Sloane.” Dr. Han, whose eyes were fixed on the contraction monitor, paid the raven-haired woman no mind. “On my count, I want you to push again. One… three!”

 

Sloane screwed her eyes shut, letting out a little whimper while she pushed as hard as she could. Her grip on Jay’s hand’s tightened, something the singer didn’t think was possible. “Son of a _bitch_ —”

 

“He’s crowning!” Dr. Han’s head disappeared under Sloane’s gown. “One more big push for me, Sloane. You’re doing great.”

 

“ _I can’t_ ,” Sloane whined, falling back on to her pillows. She was tired, sweaty, and in a helluva lot of pain. “It hurts, okay? I have to stop.”

 

The OB looked up, giving Jay an expectant glare, something along the lines of ‘ _fix her_ ’. “Doll…” The CEO’s eyes were wide, but he nodded, leaning down so that his lips were brushing against Sloane’s ear. “Baby, all we need is one more push.”

 

“Fuck off.” Sloane was glowering down at her stomach, willing the pain to go away. “You’re the one that did this to me.” Jay went to brush the raven-haired woman’s sweaty hair out of her face. “ _Don’t_ touch me. _Jesus Christ_ —”

 

“Okay, Sloane.” Dr. Han’s gaze went back to the contraction monitor. “I need a big push this time, alright? One… _three_!”

 

Sloane sucked in a deep breath, then pushed as hard as she could. Not too long afterward, a baby’s cries could be heard. The sudden relief in pressure made the raven-haired woman groan in relief, and she let her body relax. “Oh, for fuck's  _sake_ —”

 

“It’s a boy!” Dr. Han was grinning like mad, holding up a screeching, bloody newborn for all to see. “Mr. Park, would you like to cut the umbilical cord?”

 

“Um… I-yeah. I guess.” Jay was staring up at the baby, more than awestruck. He then looked down at Sloane, who was still breathing heavily. “Can I go? Will you be okay?”

 

Sloane rolled her eyes. “Go. Get away from me.” She waved the CEO away. Nurse Song was moving around the room again, checking the raven-haired woman’s vitals and all the machines she was hooked up too; Sloane couldn’t wait to have some time to herself. “Be sure to count the fingers and toes for me.”

 

Jay didn’t need to be told twice. He pressed a kiss to Sloane’s temple, then hurried over to the foot of her hospital bed, taking the pair of scissors proffered to him. The raven-haired woman couldn’t feel her umbilical cord being cut; all she heard was a tiny snip, then the singer was back at her side.

 

“He’s perfect. Even with all the blood and guts on him.” The singer pulled his chair closer to Sloane’s bed, plopping himself down into it. “Baby—”

 

“Honestly, what did you expect?” Sloane let her head loll to the side, giving her baby daddy a lazy grin. “The kid was inside of me for eight months. It’s genetics.” Jay scoffed, rolling his eyes good-naturedly.

 

“Sure, we’ll go with that.” Jay leaned over then, giving Sloane a soft kiss. “You were incredible, Doll.”

 

Sloane hummed, letting her eyes fall shut. “I tend to do my best work when I’m under pressure.” Jay laughed softly against her lips. “You should know that by now.”

 

“ _Agassi_ ,” the couple broke apart; Nurse Song was standing off to the side, cradling a blue bundle to her chest. “Would you like to hold your son?” Sloane grinned and nodded, holding her arms out.

 

“Hello there, handsome.” Sloane cradled her son close, loosening the swaddling a bit. “You just couldn’t wait to see me, huh?” she studied the baby’s face as best as she could; he was already sleeping, so she couldn’t see his eyes. “My perfect little boy. You already look exactly like your daddy.”

 

“You say that like it’s a bad thing.” Jay scoffed, brushing back some of the newborn’s hair. It was an inky black, like Sloane's and already beginning to curl at the sides. “He’s cute; he has my ears.”

 

Sloane rolled her eyes. “I was trying not to think about that.” She trailed a finger over the baby’s cheek, pouting slightly. “It’s like I had no part in his conception.” The baby yawned, and both of his parents cooed.

 

“Have you thought of a name?” Sloane didn’t (couldn’t would be a more appropriate word) take her eyes off her son. “ _Agassi_.” When the raven-haired woman finally did look up, she found Nurse Song at the foot of the bed, looking apologetic, and holding a clipboard. “We have to get Baby Park’s birth certificate filed.”

 

Sloane blinked. “Oh. Um…” She looked over at Jay, then down at her son. The CEO caressed the baby’s cheek softly, still looking awestruck. “Do you wanna hold him?” Sloane didn’t really want to give the baby up, but she figured Jay had been tortured enough for one day. “I have to fill out the birth certificate.”

 

“I— _really_?” Jay’s head snapped up, and he gave Sloane a hopeful look. “I can fill the form out.”

 

“Don’t be stupid.” The Music Contributor rolled her eyes, a tiny smile on her face. “Hold your arms out before I change my mind.” Jay immediately did as he was told, and Sloane carefully placed the baby in his arms. “Make sure to mind his head—”

 

“I’ve got him.” Jay’s voice was barely a whisper. He cradled the newborn close, pressing a soft kiss to his forehead. “Hi there, little man.” The baby made a small noise but didn’t open his eyes. When the singer looked up, his eyes were shining.

 

Sloane giggled, using her hand to comb Jay’s hair back. Nurse Song had already placed the clipboard with the baby’s birth certificate on to the raven-haired woman’s lap, but she only had eyes for her two boys. “You have got to be the corniest man I’ve ever met.”

 

“Don’t act like you don’t love it.”

~

“How are you feeling?”

 

Sloane hummed, not bothering to open her eyes. “I just pushed a six-pound baby out of a _really small_ hole.” The raven-haired woman was in a shit ton of pain, but couldn’t take anything good for it because she’d decided to breastfeed. “So take a wild guess.”

 

Jay let out a soft chuckle, and Sloane felt his lips on her forehead. She’d given birth nearly two days ago, and the singer’s barely left her side. “Well, the nurse should be around with Reign in a few. Do you want me to talk to her about upping your dose?”

 

“Mhm.” Sloane popped one eye open, then the other. “Nah, I’ll be okay.” Jay nodded, settling back down in his chair. “Are Raina and Simon coming?”

 

The CEO nodded again, typing away on his phone. “Yeah. My parents are on their way here, too.”

 

“Jesus Christ— _fuck_ that hurts.” In her haste to sit up straighter, Sloane had forgotten all about the pain she was in. “I told you that I don’t _do_ the whole meeting parents thing, Jay.”

 

“Relax, Doll. They want to meet the baby.” Jay shoved his phone into his pocket before leaning over to help the new mother sit up. “There’s nothing to be worried about.”

 

Sloane huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. “Fuck you. No one said anything about being worried.” The singer only grinned, holding his hands up as if surrendering. “And don’t call me Doll.”

 

“Knock, knock.” Nurse Song poked her head into Sloane’s hospital room, a blue bundle cradled in her arms. “Baby Park was getting fussy in the nursery, so I figured I’d bring him by for a feeding.” Jay shot out of his chair, an eager smile on his face. He met the nurse at the door, taking Reign into his arms.

 

“How’s it going, little man?” Jay walked over to Sloane’s bed, rocking the baby gently. “You must be starving, huh?” the baby’s eyes were open for once, and they flitted over his father’s face curiously.

 

Sloane smiled softly, watching the CEO interact with their son. It was kinda weird, seeing Jay being fatherly; it was a direct contradiction to how he usually was. “If you need me to come back around, just press the call button, okay?” Nurse Song bowed politely, then left the little family to their devices.

 

“Here.” Jay sat on the edge of the bed, placing Reign in Sloane’s arms. “Do you think he’ll have trouble eating, this time?” the raven-haired woman shrugged; the last few times she’d tried to feed her son, he had trouble latching on to her breast. The nurse had said it was nothing to worry about, that it happened to a lot of babies, but that didn’t stop Jay.

 

“There’s only one way to find out.” With Jay’s help, Sloane managed to pull one side of her hospital gown down, revealing her breast. She lifted Reign up to it, and the baby immediately latched on, suckling hungrily. “Guess that’s a no.”

 

The singer grinned, pulling Reign’s newborn beanie off his head. “My little man’s a fast learner.” Sloane scoffed good-naturedly and melted when the baby wrapped his tiny hand around her index finger. “You were cleared for discharge tomorrow, so I’ll be able to take you two home, finally.”

 

“Mhm.”

 

Jay opened his mouth to say more but was interrupted by a knock on the door, then Raina poking her head inside the room. “Sloanie, we’re coming in, so I hope you’re decent.” the brunette stepped into the room, an excited grin on her face. Simon stepped in after her, holding a gift bag, and shut the door behind himself. “Oh my God— bitch, are you breastfeeding?”

 

“How else am I supposed to feed my kid?” Sloane was grinning widely, and she accepted the kiss Raina pressed to her cheek. “I see you only came back after the blood and gore fest was over.”

 

“Damn right.” Raina perched herself on the edge of the hospital bed. “If I had stayed any longer, I would’ve become celibate.” The brunette fingered Reign’s cheek while he ate, cooing when he turned his gaze on her. “ _Jesus_. He’s Jay’s clone.”

 

Sloane pouted. “I know; it’s like pushing him out was the only thing I was good for.”

 

“I always figured you’d be the last of us to spawn, _dongsaeng_.” 

“You and me both.” Jay chuckled, reaching up to push his hair out of his face. “I’m thinking about taking the next few weeks off. You think you’ll be okay with handling everything at the company?”

 

“Of course.” Simon dropped into the chair next to Sloane’s bed. “Take all the time you need.

 

“He’s so small and cute!” Raina squealed, skipping over to her boyfriend, and dropping on to his lap. “I want one.”

 

Simon laughed, pressing a kiss to his girlfriend’s neck. “Should we go home and make one?” Raina had moved into the Co-CEO’s penthouse a few weeks ago, and (if the brunette’s word was to be trusted) they’d been fucking like rabbits ever since.

 

“I’ll think about it.” Raina held her left hand out, examining it. “But only after there’s an engagement ring on my finger.”

 

There was another knock on the door, and an older woman poked her head in. “Ma!” Jay stood up, looking like a deer caught in headlights. “You should have called. I would have walked you in.”

 

“I’m a big girl; I can find my way around a hospital, you know.” Jay’s mother stepped into the room, and an older man (presumably Jay’s father) followed behind her. “Now introduce us to our grandson.”

 

By now, Reign had finished eating, and Sloane had righted her gown. Feeling more than a little out of place, she handed the baby over to Jay. “Ma, dad— this is Reign.” The CEO stood up, walking over to his parents. “Little man, say hi to grandma and grandpa.”

 

“How precious.” Jay’s mom gathered the baby into her arms, rocking him back and forth. “It’s about time I got to hold a grandbaby.” Jay ducked his head, looking embarrassed.

 

“Ma—”

 

“Reign, huh?” Jay’s father peeked over his wife’s shoulder, peering down at the newborn. “He looks exactly like you, son. I hope you weren’t planning on denying him.” Sloane managed to catch her best friend’s eye, and they both dissolved into silent giggles.

 

“Come sit down, guys.” Jay led the older couple over to the loveseat close to Sloane’s bed. “Be careful with his head—”

 

“Oh, shut up.” The older woman waved her son off, handing the newborn over to her husband. “You didn’t even bother introducing us to the baby’s mother—” she came to a stop in front of Sloane. “How are you feeling, sweetheart?”

 

Sloane felt her eyes widen at the sudden onslaught of attention. She really did _hate_ meeting parents. “I’ll survive.” Jay’s mother smiled, patting the raven-haired woman’s shoulder.

 

“Believe me, I’ve felt exactly what you’re feeling right now.” She sat down on the edge of Sloane’s bed. “Park men have abnormally large heads.” Sloane nodded, chuckling nervously. “I’m Chungmi, and that’s my husband Jungil.”

 

“Sloane Michaels.” She stuck her hand out, letting out a tiny sigh of relief when the older woman shook it. “It’s nice to meet you.”

 

“I would have preferred to meet you a lot sooner.” Chungmi turned to glare at her son, who paid her no mind. “But Jay only told us about you a few weeks ago.”

 

The Music Contributor didn’t have a reply to that. If it had been up to her, she wouldn’t have met the older couple at all. “Ma, you’re freaking her out.” Jay had taken up his mother’s spot on the loveseat, watching his father burp Reign. “Dad, you don’t think you’re patting him too hard?”

 

“The boy has one kid and, all of a sudden, he’s a parenting expert.” Chungmi kissed her teeth, turning back to face Sloane. “Good luck with that one.” Sloane grinned, suddenly feeling at ease.


	11. XI

_Metaphor - A figure of speech that makes a comparison between two unlike things, without using the word like or as._

~

It took an embarrassing amount of time for Sloane to notice the cameras.

 

Nearly three months, to be exact. To be fair, the Korean paparazzi exercised way more caution than their American counterparts. They kept a fair amount of distance and weren’t obnoxious. Well, for the most part.

 

“I’m surprised they didn’t start following you around sooner.” Raina, Sloane, and Reign (his first outing since being discharged from the hospital a few weeks earlier) were out at some trendy little café for lunch. The two older women were both picking at chicken salads while the newborn slumbered away in his stroller, hidden from view by a thin blanket. “It’s not like you and Jay were big on hiding the fact that you’re together.”

 

Sloane let her fork fall on her plate with a loud clatter; she would have ordered a burger, but the leftover baby belly was proving to be a formidable opponent. “We’re not together.”

 

“Bullshit.” Raina snorted, reaching across the table to spear a cherry tomato off the raven-haired woman’s plate. “Now that Reign’s here, you and CEO-bae are a breath away from the altar.” Sloane laughed softly, folding her arms over her chest.

 

“Yeah, okay.” She spotted two high school-aged girls sitting behind Raina, (not so) secretly filming her. Jesus; weren’t they supposed to be in school? “Still, I didn’t think people would be interested in me. I’m not even famous.”

 

“But you are the black chick who managed to get knocked up by a Korean celebrity.” Raina shrugged, stuffing the plump tomato into her mouth. “Interest in you was inevitable.”

 

Reign shifted in his sleep, jostling the blanket that covered him, and Sloane hurried to fix it. “Well, that’s all fine and dandy, but I could do without Jay’s fan club trying to photograph my kid.”

 

“The hype will die down, soon enough.” Raina had given up on proper restaurant etiquette and switched out her empty plate for Sloane’s full one. “You know how it is. Some other idol will fuck up, and everyone will lose interest in you.” Sloane gave a noncommittal hum, not fully convinced.

 

“Excuse me,” the two high schoolers had moved without Sloane noticing, and were now standing in front of her table. The taller of the two girls was the one who’d spoken up, and was now looking at the raven-haired woman expectantly. “you’re Sloane Michaels, right?”

 

Sloane, while thankful for the English the teenager spoke, could feel her defenses rising. “I am.” This was the first time someone had actually approached her. “What can I do for you guys?”

 

“Well, we were wondering—”

 

“We want to see the baby.” It was the shorter of the two girls that had spoken up, stepping in front of her classmate. “You always keep it hidden, and we don’t think that’s fair.” Raina and Sloane shared a look. _It_?

 

“That’s _fascinating_. Really.” The raven-haired woman had to literally fight the urge to roll her eyes. Apparently, these… children didn’t know any better. “But I don’t want to show you my baby, and the last time I checked, I didn’t have to.”

 

The shorter high schooler stomped her foot petulantly. “But we’re Jay- _oppa_ ’s fans! We have every right to see his child.”

 

“Huh. Call me crazy, but I don’t think that’s true.” Sloane made a show of looking around the café. “And even if it was, Jay- _oppa_ isn’t here, now is he?” the two girls’ jaws dropped; they clearly weren’t expecting Sloane to say no. The raven-haired woman waved her hand dismissively. “Bye-bye, now.”

 

The high schoolers skulked off, just as Sloane’s cell phone started ringing. “Ten dollars says that Jay’s calling you. You think he sensed your distress or something?”

 

“Fuck you.” The Music Contributor snapped, reaching into her clutch for her phone. “I’m not distressed about shit.” Once the iPhone was in her hand, Sloane took one look at the screen and scowled.

 

“Ah, bitch. Pay for my food.”

 

Sloane ignored the brunette, pressing the answer button. Of course, it was her baby daddy. Today marked the CEO’s first full day of work since the day Reign was born, and he’d been blowing up the raven-haired woman’s phone every hour on the hour. “I’m busy.”

 

“I bet you are.” there was loud hip hop playing in the background, and Jay had to yell to be heard. “How’s my little man?”

 

“He’s fine.” Raina reached for Sloane’s cranberry juice, and she smacked her hand away. “He’s sleeping; just like he was an hour ago.”

 

There was shuffling on Jay’s end of the line, then silence; he must’ve moved to another room. “Yeah? Are you not at home, Doll?”

 

“Nope. I’m out with Raina.” The raven-haired woman studied her nails offhandedly. “And don’t call me Doll.”

 

Jay was silent for a moment, and Sloane could almost visualize the frown on his face. “It’s not too cold to have the baby outside?”

 

Sloane rolled her eyes. “Jay, It’s seventy degrees outside.” The waiter came back with their check, placing it down on the table before walking away again. “Reign’s wearing that fleece AOMG hoodie Kiseok and Raina got him. Besides, it’s not like we’re hiking or anything. We went out for lunch.”

 

“But, still. Reign’s only a few months old, and all the parenting books say that it’s really easy for him to get sick—”

 

“He’s _fine_ , Jay. I promise.” Sloane looked down at Reign’s stroller, adjusting the blanket a bit. The baby was still sleeping soundly, oblivious to the way his father was annoying the hell out of his mother. “You’re worse than those new moms at the Mommy and Me classes.”

 

The CEO chuckled. “It’s my job to make sure nothing happens to my little man.” Sloane huffed, rolling her eyes skyward. “He is AOMG’s heir, after all.”

 

“Stop calling him that, Corny.” She glanced over at Raina. When she noticed the shit-eating grin on the brunette’s face, she flipped her off. “I’ll be at yours in a few.”

 

Jay hummed. “You mean ours, right?” the raven-haired woman rolled her eyes, reaching into her bag for her wallet. “Or have you forgotten that we live together, now?”

 

“I haven’t forgotten anything.” The raven-haired woman sniffed. When the waiter came back around, she handed him her debit card. “I’m just staying at yours until we both get the hang of having Reign around.”

 

“Yeah, okay.” Jay sounded like he didn’t believe her.

 

There was the sound of a door being opened, then somebody yelling something on Jay’s end. Sloane couldn’t really understand what was being said. “If you’re busy, hang up; it’s not like I won’t see you later.”

 

“You sure?” the Music Contributor hummed her assent. “Aiight. Make sure you call the driver when you’re ready to go home, Doll. You have his number, right?”

 

“Yeah, yeah.” Sloane was itching to get off the phone, now. “I’ll see you later. Bye.” She shoved the phone back into her clutch. “Jesus.”

 

“Don’t be like that.” Raina managed to swipe Sloane’s drink and took a long pull from it. “You like it when CEO-bae checks up on you.”

 

The waiter came back with Sloane’s card and receipt. “Shut up.” She shoved both into her clutch, standing up, and Raina did the same. “Do you want the driver to drop you off?”

 

“Yes, please.” The brunette walked around the table, taking hold of the handlebar of Reign’s stroller. “Look at this cutie; already sleeping his life away like his mama.” Sloane scoffed but followed her best friend out of the restaurant.

~

“My little prince,” Sloane was lounging on the couch, a nearly naked Reign propped up on her thighs. “What should we do today? Hm? Should we listen to some music?” Reign gurgled, then gave Sloane a gummy smile. All the parenting books Jay made her read said that talking to her newborn like he was a normal human being (i.e. without the baby voice) increased brain development. “Mommy was thinking Beethoven. Then Tupac.”

 

Jay padded into the living room, shirtless, and drying his hair with a hand towel. “Starting him out early, huh?” He came to a stop behind the couch Sloane was on. “I figured we’d teach the little man to talk, first.”

 

“It’s never too early for good music. I used to spend entire days with headphones on my stomach.” Jay hummed, leaning over the couch to press a kiss to the top of Reign’s head, and the baby let out an excited squeak. “See? He already has a decent pitch because of it.”

 

“Mhm. And as soon as he learns to walk, he’ll be in the dance studio with me.” The singer swooped the baby into his arms. “Isn’t that right, buddy? You’re gonna be a dancer like daddy.” Reign cooed happily, then dropped his head on to the CEO’s shoulder. “Ah, that’s cute.”

 

“I’ve been thinking.” Sloane stretched her legs out, letting out a satisfied groan. “Reign and I should probably be moving back into the penthouse, right? Then you can start back recording in the basement whenever you want.”

 

The singer didn’t reply at first, choosing instead to whisper in Reign’s ear while he swayed from side to side. After a moment, he looked over at the raven-haired woman. “I can always go into the office to record.”

 

“Jay—”

 

The singer lifted his shoulder in a half-assed attempt at a shrug. “I don’t want you two to leave.” He began to pace the room, patting Reign’s diaper-clad butt in a soothing motion. “If you do, I’ll miss everything.”

 

“There’s no need for the dramatics. Me staying here won’t have any effect on what you’re going to be around for.” Sloane brought her knees up to her chest, resting her chin on top of them. “I know you haven’t forgotten about your chosen occupation.”

 

“Fine.” Jay cursed under his breath. “But I’m not comfortable with you two staying in the penthouse while I’m away. The house has a better security system.”

 

Sloane fought the urge to scowl. The singer had taken to parenting like a baby fish took to swimming, and was loathe to leaving Sloane and Reign for anything; the least she could do was see his side of things.

 

“That may be true, but I can’t help but feel a lot more comfortable having a doorman in the lobby.” The raven-haired woman sat up, holding her arms out, and Jay handed the baby over. “Everything’s going back to how it was before.” Sloane cradled Reign in the crook of her arm, and he reached up, fisting a lock of her hair. “It’s really not that big of a deal.”

 

“Except now there’s a baby to think about.” Sloane didn’t have a reply for that. “Reign shouldn’t be forced to divide his time between us.” Jay sighed, taking the seat next to the Music contributor. “It’s not fair to him—”

 

“Don’t, Jay.” The singer ignored Sloane, throwing an arm over her shoulders and pulling her into his chest. “I’m being serious; this is what we agreed on, remember?”

 

Jay huffed, burying his face in the young mother’s hair. “Can’t we negotiate?” his free hand went to Reign’s inky black hair. The newborn wasn’t even a month old, but his hair was already thicker than most, and curling in some places. “I like having you guys around. In fact, I’d prefer it.”

 

“Why are you so _clingy_?” Sloane whined, a begrudging smile on her face. The raven-haired woman wouldn’t admit it, but she secretly liked the singer’s sudden attachment. It made her feel wanted, which was very welcome to someone who’d just given birth. “It’s annoying.”

 

“I can’t help it. All I think about is you and Reign.” Jay hadn’t taken his eyes off their son, who was staring up at Sloane with wide and curious eyes. “All I wanna do is be around you guys. Even when I’m working— _especially_ when I’m working.”

 

Sloane hummed, her face heating up. “Simon did mention how useless you’ve been lately.” When she looked over at the CEO, he was staring right at her. “If— and I do mean if— I decide to stay here, then there has to be a new agreement.”

 

“Yeah?” the corners of Jay’s mouth quirked. “I’m listening.”

 

“Good.” The Music Contributor grinned. “Because, if you want me and Reign to stay here, then you and I have to start co-parenting in every sense of the word.” Jay narrowed his eyes in confusion.

 

“What is that supposed to mean?”

 

Reign’s head dropped forward into his mother’s chest, and his mouth made sucking motions. “It means that we go half on everything— diaper duty, late night feedings, bills…” When Sloane lifted her shirt (and nursing bra) up, the newborn immediately latched on, suckling as if he hadn’t eaten three hours ago. “I’m over being a freeloader.”

 

“You’re not a freeloader, Doll.” Jay chuckled, running his thumb over Reign’s forehead. “I’m taking care of Reign, and in order to do so, I have to take care of you, right?”

 

Sloane let out a disbelieving scoff. “That’s complete bull—”

 

“Language, Doll.”

 

“Oh, shut _up_.” Sloane waved her free hand dismissively. “I can take of myself. And don’t call me Doll.” She looked down at Reign, who was still staring up at her intently, even as he ate. “He’s been staring at me all day.”

 

“The little man probably just thinks mommy is too pretty to be real.” Jay shrugged, leaning down to press a soft kiss to the newborn’s forehead. “I know I do.”

 

Sloane hummed, “Corny.”

 

“You love it.” Jay cheesed, making the raven-haired woman roll her eyes. When Reign finished eating, he took the baby back into his arms, lifting the newborn to his shoulder. “I’ll call the moving company in the morning, aiight? They’ll pack up the penthouse and bring your things over.”

 

Sloane popped one eye open, then the other. “Seriously, what the fuck?” Jay stood up, patting Reign’s back softly, and still grinning. He turned in the direction of the nursery. “Jay—”

 

“Don’t fight me on this, Doll.” Sloane scrambled to her feet, a string of protests on her tongue. “Don’t worry, either. I’ll handle everything.”


	12. XII

_On Spec-  When the editor is not obligated to publish the piece as the writer was not officially assigned to write it._

~

“Here, let me help you with that.” Sloane, who was in the middle of cursing the mere existence of baby strollers, looked up. Hyuk, with a large smile on his face, was jogging over to the young mother. She was in front of Jay’s house, trying (and failing) to get Reign’s stroller up the front steps.

 

“Thank you.” the singer caught up with Sloane, taking the stroller’s handlebar, and hefting the entire thing over the stairs. “Are you here to record with Jay?”

 

“Yeah; It was a last minute set up.” The singer brushed his hands on his jeans, then reached out for Sloane’s arm, pulling her into his chest. “Where’ve you been? I haven’t seen you in forever.” Sloane scoffed but fisted her fingers in Hyuk’s shirt.

 

“I saw you three days ago.” Hyuk ignored the Music Contributor in favor of burying his face in her hair. “So clingy.”

 

“You love it.” Hyuk released Sloane reluctantly, letting out an awkward little laugh, “I didn’t expect to see you here. I’m happy I came, now.” Reign yawned widely, drawing both adults’ attention. “And you brought my favorite little guy with you.” Dean bent over the stroller, getting a good look at the baby. “He really is Jay’s clone.”

 

The raven-haired woman scowled. “I’ve heard that before.” She reached into her bag, looking for the spare key the CEO had given her. “Have you been waiting out here long?” Once Sloane found the key, she hurried to unlock the front door. “Jay probably can’t hear the doorbell; he must be down in the studio.”

 

“Ah… don’t worry about it.” Dean waited for Sloane to open the door, then carried Reign’s stroller inside the house. “I got to see you, didn’t I?”

 

Sloane shut the door behind the singer, a small smile on her face. “You’ve gotten really good at that flattery thing.” Reign let out a cranky squawk, and the raven-haired woman hurried to free him from the stroller. She lifted the baby into her arms, pressing a loud kiss to his cheek. “My little prince. You’re hungry, right?” to Hyuk, she said, “Do you need me to show you where the basement is?”

 

The singer was staring at her, a small smirk on his face. “I don’t think the little heir would like that very much.” Sloane flushed, burying her face in Reign’s hair. Since when was she the type to go all adolescent schoolgirl over some guy? “ _Ani_ , you should go and feed him. I’ll be okay.” The raven-haired woman opened her mouth to protest, but Hyuk was already on his way down the hall. “I’ll call you tonight, yeah?”

 

Sloane let out a breath, looking down at Reign. “You got all that impatience from your daddy, you know that right?” The baby was mouthing at her chest, making tiny sucking noises. “Unbelievable. I fed you not even two hours ago—”

 

“Sloane?” Jay stepped into the foyer, a model-type hanging off his arm. A very _familiar_ model-type. The CEO looked surprised. And nervous. “You’re back early, I thought—”

 

“ _Omo_ , _omo_.” Bora dropped Jay’s arm, rushing over to Sloane, who took a step back. “ _Oppa_ , is this Reign? He looks just like you!” she reached forward, hoping to touch the baby’s cheek, but the look on the raven-haired woman’s face made her think otherwise, and she took a step back.

 

“Do I even need to ask?” Sloane turned her gaze on to her baby’s father, and he ducked his head, his ears going bright red. “Jay, seriously, what the _fuck_ —”

 

Bora stepped back, taking one of the CEO’s hands in both of hers. “Jay-oppa and I had a talk; we’ve decided to try and work things out.” There was a happy grin on the model’s face, but there was no mistaking the triumphant look in her eyes. “We might even get back together.”

 

“ _No_ —” Jay’s head snapped up, and he looked alarmed. “No, Bora was here to talk about AOMG _possibly_ helping her out with a photo shoot. That’s it.”

 

“Right.” Sloane lifted an eyebrow, looking unimpressed. “I mean… as long as this doesn’t end with you screaming like a deranged banshee and destroying the living room again.” She bounced Reign on her hip. “The little one’s averse to screeching.”

 

Not surprisingly, the quip didn’t deter Bora. “Look, I wanted to apologize for my behavior the last time we saw each other. At the time, I made the mistake of thinking that my relationship with Jay- _oppa_ was more than what it really was, and I… I overreacted when he ended things.” Sloane scoffed; overreacted was a mild way of putting things. “It won’t happen again. Especially now that Reign’s here. I swear.”

 

Sloane didn’t say anything at first, attempting to digest what was happening. It was only when Reign let out another, angry squawk that anything happened. Jay lifted his head slightly, preparing for the worst. “Sloane—”

 

“Whatever.” The Music Contributor shrugged, gently bouncing Reign to calm him down. “I don’t care what you two do. I need to feed the baby.” She started heading for the stairs, then paused. “Oh, and before I forget.” Sloane turned on her heel, finding the new(ish) couple staring at her. “If you already scheduled the moving company, cancel. I’m staying at the penthouse.”

 

Jay followed Sloane up the stairs and into the guest bedroom. “You’re not going back there.” The raven-haired woman ignored him, going over to the foot of the bed and sitting down. She adjusted her top and Reign latched on hungrily, flattening his little hand against his mother’s heart. “Sloane— _fuck_. Just try to be reasonable for once.”

 

“What do you mean? This is me being reasonable.” Sloane grinned and shook her head. “You, on the other hand, are out of your goddamned _mind_ if you expect me to stay here and listen to you two hump each other like dogs.”

 

“It’s not like that—”

 

“Save it. Please.” She stood up then, crossing the room to get to her suitcase. She’d been planning on heading back over to the penthouse in another week or so, but she suddenly had no interest in staying any longer. “Reign and I will be better off at the penthouse.”

 

“ _No_.” Jay walked over to where Sloane was, caging her in. His eyes were wide and pleading. “You two are better off here. I— _we_ can make this work, alright?” he took another step forward, and she held her hand up, stopping him.

 

“You smell like her. You guys must’ve just finished fucking, huh?” Sloane tilted her head to the side, looking thoughtful. “Was it down in the basement? Or was it in the same bed you fucked me in?”

 

Jay’s face fell. “Doll…”

 

“You’re incredible, you know that right?” Sloane scoffed, shaking her head. “I’m leaving, Jay, and if you wanna see Reign, you know where to find me."


	13. XIII

_Ode - A lengthy lyric poem that often expresses lofty emotions in a dignified style._  

~

“You’re just the happiest baby, aren’t you?” Raina was blowing raspberries into Reign’s belly after every word, making the baby dissolve into breathless laughter each time. The two were on Sloane’s bed, playing around until the brunette had to leave for her date with Simon. “Hm…? Or is because you love your auntie so much?”

 

“I wouldn’t stay too close to his bottom half for too long if I were you.” Sloane was sitting at her vanity, flipping through a magazine. “When he laughs like that, it’s almost always because he’s planning on disabling your sense of smell.”

 

Raina leaned back, scrunching her face up, only to lean back down and blow another raspberry on Reign’s tummy. “That’s okay; I’m not the one on diaper duty. Isn’t that right, little man?” her answer was another peal of the baby’s laughter, then a foul stench. “ _Jesus Christ_.”

 

Sloane cackled, standing up, and throwing the magazine back on the vanity. “What did I say?” she walked over to the bed, lifting her son into her arms. “I know how my little prince likes to think.” The Music Contributor pressed a loud kiss to Reign’s cheek, making him coo happily.

 

“Reign may look like Jay, but that personality is all you, bitch.” Raina rolled over, taking up most of the space on her best friend’s bed, and watched as she crossed over to the changing station on the other side of the room. “He’s still cute, though.”

 

“Thanks.” Sloane shook her head fondly, then gently laid Reign on to the changing table. “Do you know where Kiseok's taking you?”

 

“Probably to that ramen place he likes.” Raina shrugged, examining her nails, “He hasn’t been in the mood to do much more than that, lately. Jay’s been working everyone like crazy these past few weeks.” Sloane hummed and busied herself with changing Reign’s diaper. She hadn’t spoken to her baby’s father in weeks and preferred to keep it that way. “Sloane—”

 

“Jay gets to see Reign whenever he wants to, okay? I’m not doing anything wrong.” The raven-haired woman threw her baby’s soiled diaper into the nearby Diaper Genie. When Sloane looked over her shoulder, she found Raina glaring at her. “This has nothing to do with me, Raina.”

 

“No…” Raina sat up, folding her arms over her chest. “this has nothing to do with _Reign_. This has everything to do with you and Jay being idiots.”

 

Sloane finished changing Reign’s diaper, then lifted him into her arms. “Jay’s the one who got back together with Bora.” Reign let out a satisfied coo, then grabbed a lock of his mother’s hair. “I don’t know what you expect me to do about it.”

 

“You need to stop being so stoic all the time, and just admit to the fact that you might like your baby daddy. Quit making excuses.” The brunette let out a loud groan, flopping back down on the bed. “They’re not even together, Sloane.”

 

Sloane shrugged, then pressed another kiss to her baby’s cheek, making him squeal. “Well, it didn’t look that way to me.”

 

“You’re being ridiculous.” Raina let out a long-suffering sigh. “And now my baby Kiseok has to suffer at work because of it.” the Music Contributor rolled her eyes, not bothering to rise to her best friend’s bait. “Jesus, Sloane. Just talk to the guy.”

 

“Hm.” Sloane’s phone rang from its spot on her vanity, and she snatched it up. Of course, it was Jay FaceTiming here. “Maybe. I’ll think about.” Reign reached for the iPhone, and she held it out of his reach, pressing the answer button and holding the phone up so that both she and the baby were in view.

 

“Hey.”

 

From what Sloane could tell, the CEO was at an airport and looked dead on his feet. “Is something wrong? I thought you were staying in Tokyo for another week.” Raina perked up, giving Sloane two thumbs up.

 

“It’s been raining too hard to film anything, so we postponed the shooting.” Someone called for Jay in the background, and he rubbed his face tiredly. “How’s my little man? Do you miss appa, yet?” Reign, recognizing his father’s voice, let out a tiny whine and made another attempt for the phone.

 

“We’ve been watching you on SNL.” Sloane grabbed Reign’s hand, bringing it to her lips. “Hearing your voice calms him down, and it puts me to sleep, so it’s a win-win.”

 

Jay rolled his eyes. “Nice.” The raven-haired woman grinned, more than satisfied with herself. “I’m just calling to ask if I can see Reign this weekend.”

 

“Of course.” Sloane pressed a kiss to the top of her son’s head. “Do you wanna spend the weekend with daddy, babyboy?” Reign cooed, stuffing a fist into his mouth. To Jay, she said, “What time are you coming through? I’ll have him ready.”

 

“Actually,” the singer cleared his throat, and Sloane could see the faint blush on his cheeks. “I was hoping to have you both over.” Sloane raised an eyebrow. “You know Reign hates drinking out of a bottle, and I really don’t have the energy to fight him.”

 

Sloane scoffed. “Okay, so your son’s spoiled. Why do I have to suffer?” Raina’s head popped on to the screen. “Raina, move—”

 

The brunette ignored her, glaring at Jay. “If she goes to your house, you have to stop acting like there’s a stick up your ass. Especially around Kiseokkie.”

 

“I’m _not_ going—”

 

“Deal.” there was a small smirk on the CEO’s face. “But Sloane has to stay for the entire weekend.”

 

“Hey!” Reign jumped at the rise in his mother’s voice, then smiled again. “I don’t want to spend the weekend at Jay’s house, so I’m not going to. Okay?” Reign blinked up at his mother, then clapped his hands together.

 

Raina rolled her eyes. “She’ll be there. Now call my baby and give him the entire weekend off.”

 

Sloane scowled, attempting to push the brunette out of the camera’s view. “ _Raina_ —”

 

“Fine. Doll, be ready; I’ll pick you guys up at eleven.” Jay ended the call before Sloane could object. Reign pouted, his bottom lip jutted out generously; tears were sure to follow.

 

“I’m not going.” The raven-haired woman tossed her phone back on to the vanity, then lifted Reign up to her shoulder to pat his back. “I shouldn’t have to. Reign will drink from his bottle if he gets hungry enough.”

 

“That’s not the point, and you know it.” Raina sat down on her best friend’s lap, making herself comfortable. “Because of _your_ baby daddy, I haven’t been properly dicked down in three weeks.”

 

Sloane made a face. “I could have gone my entire life without knowing that—”

 

“I’m going crazy, Sloanie.” Raina put on a pout to match Reign’s. “Do this for me? It’ll just be for two days.” Sloane raised an eyebrow, looking between her best friend, and her child. “Please, please, _please_? A bitch is drier than the Sahara Desert—”

 

Sloane put her hands over Reign’s ears. “Not in front of the baby!”

~

The next morning found Sloane on her bed, stuffing one of Reign’s many onesies into his baby bag. “Baby, I think you might have more clothes than I do.” The little boy was a few feet away from her, laying on his back, and cooing to himself. He’d been a little under the weather lately, most likely due to his first head cold. “We gotta stop your daddy from buying you stuff every time he goes shopping. Hm?”

 

Sloane was still pissed about losing her weekend, but there wasn’t much she could do about it. Jay had a valid point about Reign not liking bottles, and the raven-haired woman didn’t like to think about what they went through when she wasn’t around for feeding time.

 

“There’s my favorite little man.” Speak of the Devil. Jay padded into the bedroom, a tired smile on his face. He must have come to the apartment straight from the airport. The singer ignored Sloane’s glare, walking right up to the bed, and gathering Reign into his arms. “ _Appa_ missed you so much, did you know that?” Jay pressed a loud kiss to the baby’s chubby little cheek, making him squeal happily.

 

“He’s been a little fussy today, but I played him some of your music, and he calmed right down.” Sloane finally finished packing Reign’s bag and lifted it and her own overnight bag on to her shoulder. “Are you ready to go?”

 

“Yeah.” Jay had Reign cradled in one arm and was holding his carrier with the other. He let Sloane take the carrier, then led the way out of the penthouse, walking over to the elevator. “You’ve been buying my songs?”

 

Sloane scowled, suppressing the urge to punch Jay in the crotch. “Why don’t you just watch his head, jackass—”

 

“I’ve got him, Doll.” The CEO followed Sloane closely, and when she stopped walking, he ran into her back. “You said he’s been fussy? Is he sick?”

 

“Don’t call me Doll.” The Music Contributor pressed the down button, then reached over to tickle Reign’s belly. “It’s probably his first cold. Nothing major— we were still able to have our fifteen minutes of tummy time this morning.” The elevator doors dinged, then opened. “I was planning on spending my free time binge-watching that new show about the comic book, you know.”

 

Jay grinned, letting Sloane step on to the elevator before following her. “I have DVR at the house.” he pressed a kiss to Reign’s forehead, earning himself a happy coo. “You won’t miss your drama.”

 

“I better not. I’m not entirely sure, but I think the heroine died in the last episode.” Sloane took a step closer to the CEO, tapping Reign on the nose. “You gave Simon the weekend off, right?”

 

“Mhm. _Hyung_ is flying Raina out to Jeju.” Jay didn’t bother with taking his eyes off of Reign. “He’s cute, right?”

 

Sloane grinned, shaking her head. She pulled a thin blanket out of Reign’s baby bag, and threw it over the baby, shielding him from any potential paparazzi outside. “Very cute, of course.” It was quiet for a moment, but the raven-haired woman _had_ to ask. She needed to know if she needed to go back for her noise canceling headphones. “Will your girlfriend be around?”

 

“Bora has a shoot over in Thailand this week.” The elevator dinged again, and this time, Jay was the first to step off. “So, no. She won’t be around.” Sloane rolled her eyes, mocking the CEO under her breath. “What she said to you…” Jay cleared his throat. “It was a misunderstanding.”

 

“Yeah, I didn’t misunderstand anything.” Sloane followed her baby’s father out of the elevator, waving at the doorman as she passed. “You’re back with that crazy bitch, so Reign and I are back in the penthouse.”

 

“ _I’m not_ —” Jay adjusted his hold on Reign, cursing under his breath. “Why would I get back together with Bora?” The CEO fished his car keys out of his pocket, handing them over to Sloane so that she could unlock the car. “She’s not you.”

 

Sloane gave a noncommittal hum. “Right. So… _I’m_ the one you want now?” She unlocked the car, then opened the backseat for Jay. “You’re so full of shit—”

 

“You think I’m lying?” Jay flattened his hand against the car door, slamming it shut. He leaned down then, looking Sloane straight in the eye. “After everything that’s happened?”

 

“What? You mean after we fucked a couple of times and I got knocked up?” Sloane turned to face the singer, throwing a hand on her hip. “Can you blame me? Be honest.”

 

Jay took a step closer to Sloane, the corners of his mouth quirked. “I guess not.” he reached out, tucking a lock of Sloane’s black hair behind her ear. “I bet you don’t really believe that, though.”

 

“Mhm.” The Music Contributor ducked out of the singer’s reach. “Keep thinking that.” Reign let out a playful squawk, interrupting his parents. “It’s cold. Put Reign in the car before he gets sicker than he already is.”

 

Jay smirked but did as he was told. Sloane rolled her eyes, yanking open the passenger’s door and slipping inside the car. A few moments later, Jay was simultaneously starting the car and buckling himself into the driver’s seat. “I’m stopping for fried chicken at that place you like. You hungry?”

 

“Yeah.” Sloane was turned in her seat, adjusting Reign’s puffy jacket. The baby was cooing softly to himself, and playing with his fingers. “Stop for diapers, too. I know you don’t have enough.”

 

Jay scoffed, pulling out of the parking lot. “I would if you hadn’t left the house.”

 

“Yeah, yeah.” Sloane turned back around, folding her arms over her chest. "Did you set up the guest room?” the CEO didn’t answer at first. “Hello? Where am I supposed to sleep?”

 

“Where do you think?” In almost no time at all, Jay was double parking in front of a local chicken place. “The three of us had no problem sleeping in the master bedroom before.”

 

The raven-haired woman let out a disbelieving laugh. “You’re ridiculous. I’m not sharing a bed with you.” Reign let out an excited squeak. Car rides were his favorite, for the moment; he loved watching everything pass by. “And Reign needs to be sleeping in his crib. Not the co-sleeper.”

 

“I like having him close, Doll.” Jay parked the car but didn’t kill the engine. “It’s less travel for me when he gets hungry at night.”

 

Sloane rolled her eyes, turning in her seat to face Reign again. “Please. That sounds more like laziness, to me.” She puffed her cheeks out, and the baby giggled. “Don’t forget to get the garlic flavor for me.”

 

Jay got out of the car but poked his head back inside. “Are you trying to scare me off?” Sloane flipped him off. “Only if you ask nicely, Doll.”

 

“ _Go_.”

 

Half an hour later, Jay was leading the way up to his front door, two bulging bags of takeout, Reign’s baby bag, and Sloane’s overnight bag in his hands. Sloane followed closely, a sleeping Reign in her arms.

 

“You wanna go put him down in the nursery?” Jay punched in his key code, then pushed the door open. “I’ll set the food up in the living room.” Sloane hummed an affirmative, kicking her shoes off before heading for the staircase.

 

Reign’s nursery was near the end of the hall, right next door to Jay’s room. “My little prince,” Sloane pushed the door open softly, padding into the room. “Did all that excitement from seeing your daddy wear you out? Hm?” the baby let out a soft breath, burying his face into his mother’s shoulder. “Such a cutie.”

 

Since Reign was already wearing his nighttime onesie, all the Sloane had to do was place him in his crib. Afterward, the raven-haired woman grabbed the baby monitor before she tip-toed out of the room, leaving the door cracked behind her.

 

Jay was already in the living room, shirtless (surprise, surprise), drinking a beer, and using the remoter to flip through channels on the television. The fried chicken was already set up on the coffee table in front of him. “You didn’t have to wait on me.” Sloane plopped down next to the singer, swiping his beer, and taking a swig.

 

“You’re not supposed to be drinking, Doll.” The CEO snatched the bottle back, a playful scowl on his face. “I don’t want my kid getting shitfaced off his breastmilk.”

 

Sloane snorted. “Fuck off.” She snatched the remote out of Jay’s hand, flipping to the channel her drama usually played on. “Besides, it’s not like you brought me anything to drink.”

 

“Did you forget where the kitchen was, or something?” the singer leaned forward and grabbed a chicken wing. He settled on original crispy to match Sloane’s garlic parmesan. “Get some napkins while you’re in there.”

 

“Asshole. _I’m_ the guest.” Sloane shifted her body so that it was leaning on the armrest, then nudged her baby daddy with her foot. “You go get it.” Jay ignored her, throwing his now clean wing back in the box, and grabbing another. “ _Jay_ —”

 

The CEO groaned, pushing Sloane’s foot away so he could stand. “I wish you were this needy in bed.” Sloane grinned, then bit her lip, watching Jay walk away. She would _never_ get tired of those tattoos. “What do you want? Juice or soda?”

 

“Surprise me.” The raven-haired woman grabbed her box of chicken, then settled back to watch whatever was playing on the TV. Faintly, she could hear the refrigerator being opened and closed, then the padding of Jay’s feet on the wooden floor.

 

“Here.” He pressed an ice cold can to the back of Sloane’s neck, making her squeal and punch him in the arm.

 

“You’re such a goddamned jackass, what the _fuck_ —”

 

“Mhm. You know I love it when you talk dirty to me.” The CEO plopped back down on the couch, dropping the drink (fruit punch) on to Sloane’s lap. “What are we watching?”

 

Sloane rolled her eyes, handing the remoter back over to Jay. “Hell if I know.” she bit into a piece of chicken, letting out a content hum. “There aren’t any subtitles.” Jay grunted and pressed a few buttons on the remote, configuring the subtitles.

 

“When do you have to go back to work?” Jay grabbed Sloane’s legs, placing them on his lap. “I’m free for the next week, so you can leave Reign here, and I’ll drop him off at the penthouse.” He cleared his throat. “Or you could just come back here, afterward.”

 

“Look at you; trying to be all domestic and shit.” The raven-haired woman threw her half-empty box of chicken back on to the table. “I’m not going into work until Wednesday.” Sloane looked over at Jay just in time to see him scowl, and she grinned. “Don’t worry. Reign and I will be out of your hair before Bora comes back home.”

 

Jay’s lip curled. “You really love pissing me off, huh?” he let out a world-weary sigh, his head falling back on to the couch. “I really couldn’t give less of a fuck about Bora if I tried, but you already know that.” That may or may not have made Sloane smirk a little.

 

“Is that right?” the singer ignored her, so she nudged him with her foot. “Keep talking like that, and I might never leave.” Sloane tried to pull her foot back, but Jay wrapped a hand around her ankle. “What?”

 

Jay pulled on Sloane’s leg, making her back slide down the couch’s armrest. He crawled over the raven-haired woman’s body, an oddly intense look in his eye. “You promise?” Sloane only raised an eyebrow.

 

“That depends.” she wrapped her arms around Jay’s neck, fingering the hair at the nape of his neck. “You plan on kicking me out, or something?” The CEO pretended to look thoughtful at the idea, and Sloane snorted, slapping the back of his head lightly. “Don’t be a dick.”

 

“I don’t want you to leave— you know that, Doll.” Jay ducked his head, pressing their lips together briefly, then pulled away. “I wanna come home to you and Reign every night.”

 

Sloane pursed her lips, a poor attempt to hide her grin. “That’s a big commitment. Are you sure you’re up for it?”

 

“Are you really doubting _me_? Seriously?” Jay scowled, playfully biting at the raven-haired woman’s collarbone. “You’re the one with commitment issues.”

 

“You say that now, but what about when you wanna go out and do all the shit you AOMG people like to do?” Sloane tugged on the singer’s hair, grinning like mad. “Having a newborn and your baby mama following you around will cramp your style.”

 

Jay’s face hardened. “Don’t call yourself that—”

 

“Cool it with the dramatics, hm?” Jay ignored the raven-haired woman, nipping at her collarbone again. This time, it was hard enough to leave a mark. “Are you gonna keep pouting, or are you gonna take me upstairs before Reign wakes—”

 

“I can’t have you right here?” The singer was already kissing a path down Sloane’s neck, nipping whenever he thought it necessary. “I haven’t had you since before Reign was born.”

 

“ _Fuck_ …” Jay flicked his tongue over Sloane’s pulse point, and she let out a tiny moan. “I don’t wanna— we’re gonna wake the baby.”

 

Jay hooked his fingers into the loops of Sloane’s shorts, yanking them down. “Mhm… I had the nursery soundproofed months ago.” He pressed his thumb against the raven-haired woman’s core through her panties, earning himself a low keen. “You can be as loud as you want, Doll; the baby won’t be able to hear us.”

 

“Promise?” Sloane used her grip on Jay’s hair to pull him up for a kiss. It was sloppy, more teeth knocking together than anything, but just the way Sloane liked it. “Will I get to ride you, too?”

 

“You can do whatever you want, baby.” The CEO detached himself from the raven-haired woman, standing up to remove his jeans. “Just— lose the clothes, first.” He kicked his jeans away before helping Sloane up.

 

“Impatience.” Sloane shimmied out of her shorts, then her underwear. “That’s kinda hot.” Jay eyed Sloane hungrily, biting down on his bottom lip. “Are you just gonna stand there, or—”

 

Jay plopped back down on to the couch, spreading his legs open. His dick was half hard and curving up towards his stomach. “You talk a lot of shit; did you know that?”

 

Sloane only smirked, straddling the singer’s lap. “I thought you liked that about me.” She reached behind herself, grasping Jay’s dick in a firm grip, drawing a low moan out of him. “Hm? Or were you just saying what I wanted to hear so you could fuck me?”

 

“ _Fuck_.” Jay’s hips bucked, and his head fell back. Sloane stroked him from base to tip, squeezing ever so slightly. “Baby, please—”

 

“I like hearing you beg.” Sloane hummed, leaning down to kiss one of Jay’s many tattoos. “Almost as much as I like your tattoos.” she trailed her tongue up to Jay’s nipple, and he whined. _Whined_.

 

The CEO reached around her, slapping her hand away from his dick. “…such a goddamned tease.” He lined himself up with Sloane’s entrance, sliding home with ease. “Shit— _fuck_.”

 

“ _Jay_ …” Sloane rolled her hips once, then stopped, biting her lip. “I should go check on Reign.” Jay cupped the back of the raven-haired woman’s neck, forcing their lips together. “Right?”

 

“Wrong.” Jay snapped his hips forward, and Sloane cried out. “You’re out of your fucking mind if you think I’m letting you go.” His other hand was on Sloane’s waist, guiding her over his dick. “Hm?”

 

Sloane let out a tiny gasp, then rolled her hips into Jay’s. “ _Yes_. Right there—”

 

“Are you gonna make me do all the work?” Jay gave Sloane a smug smirk, letting the hand on her neck fall to her breast; his other hand still on her hip. “I thought you wanted to ride me, Doll.”

 

“What do you think I’m doing?” Sloane slapped at the singer’s chest, and he caught her hand, bringing it up to his lips. “God, you’re such an asshole—”

 

Sloane blinked, and suddenly she was staring up at her baby’s father. “But you love it, right?” Jay angled his hips just right, and the raven-haired woman saw stars. “You love how good I fuck you?”

 

“Yes… _yes_.” Sloane clawed at Jay’s back, her eyes rolling to the back of her head. “That. Do that again.”

 

The singer ducked his head, pressing a kiss to Sloane’s clavicle, and she could feel him grinning against her skin. “Answer my question, first.” The raven-haired woman scowled, refusing to answer, so Jay stilled his hips. “No? I keep forgetting how stubborn you are.”

 

“I— _fine_.” Jay hummed, too caught up in sucking another hickey on to Sloane’s skin. “I love you, now _please_.” The raven-haired woman whined, canting her hips up. She was too far gone to even realize her slip of the tongue. “Stop being a dick—”

 

“You love me, baby?” the singer snapped his hips forward suddenly, making Sloane cry out. “Not as much as I love you. Nowhere _near_.” He started to fuck Sloane with a renewed vigor, reveling in every noise she made. “Again. Say it again.”

 

“Jay…” the CEO sat back on his heels, hitching one of Sloane’s legs up. The new angle had the raven-haired woman seeing stars, and she scrambled to find something to anchor her. “I’m gonna cum—”

 

Jay was smirking again. “Yeah?” he grabbed both of Sloane’s hands, pinning them over her head while he fucked into her. “Do it, then. Cum on this dick, Sloane.” He angled his hips slightly, and Sloane’s vision went white. The raven-haired woman came with a desperate moan, and when Jay let go of her hands, she immediately began clawing at the singer’s back. “That’s my girl. You’re doing such a good job for me.”

 

“Oh, my—” Sloane was struggling to catch her breath. Jay was still fucking into her slowly, drawing out her orgasm, and she found it difficult to concentrate. “ _Fuck_.”

 

“Shit.” Jay’s hips stuttered, and he let out a low moan. “…feel so _fucking_ good.”

 

Sloane’s grin was smug. “You gonna cum for me?” she dragged her hand up the CEO’s chest, stopping at his neck. “Hm…? You gonna fill me up, baby?” Sloane squeezed Jay’s neck lightly, testing the waters, and was rewarded with another, breathy moan.

 

“Harder.” Jay’s hands went to the raven-haired woman’s waist, gripping tightly. He was rolling his hips expertly, and Sloane had to bite her lip to keep from crying out. “Baby—”

 

“I’ve got you.” Sloane shushed him lightly, still grinning. “All you have to do is let go.” she tightened her grip, and it was like the dam broke.

 

“Fucking—” the singer came with a choked gasp, snapping his hips forward at a bruising pace. He leaned over to catch Sloane in a sloppy kiss, murmuring a soft “ _Harder_ ,” against her lips. Sloane whined softly but did as she was told, feeling herself teetering over the edge again.

 

“I’m gonna cum,” Jay grinned, rolling his hips again. He knew just how to angle his hips. Sloane let out a tiny whimper, gripping his neck harder than she would’ve liked. “Jay, I’m gonna… I’m gonna—”

 

If you asked Sloane about the sound that came out of her mouth, she wouldn’t even be able to explain it. It was a high keening sound, something Jay swallowed eagerly. “Shit,” Jay let himself collapse on top of the Music Contributor, breathing heavily. “And I thought you were hot before, Doll.”

 

The raven-haired woman let her head fall back, groaning. “Way to ruin the moment, Corny.” She pushed at the singer’s chest until he flipped their position. “We shouldn’t have done that. You know that, right?”

 

“Nope.” Jay craned his neck, nosing at Sloane’s collarbone. “If we’re lucky, Reign will have a little sister soon.”

 

Sloane scoffed. “I’m on the pill—”

 

“You were on the pill last time, too.” Jay grinned up at the Music Contributor. “Give me a baby girl, and I won’t ask for anything else.”

 

“Bullshit. You're literally the greediest guy I know” Sloane snuggled into the singer’s side. The two of them barely fit on the sofa. “Even if I wanted to have more kids with you— and I _don’t_ , by the way— Reign isn’t even four months old. You’re out of your fucking mind if you think my black ass is getting pregnant again.”

 

“Mhm.” Jay hummed, trailing his hand down Sloane’s spine, and making her shiver slightly. “We’ll see, Doll.”


	14. XIV.

_Query - A one-page letter pitching an article or a book idea to an editor. It usually consists of a catchy introduction, a bit of background on the topic, and a synopsis of the writer’s credits._

~

Sloane woke up alone.

 

The raven-haired woman wasn’t worried, though. Not only was Jay’s side of the bed still warm, but Sloane could also hear the guy talking to Reign through the baby monitor.

 

“ _Yah, yah, yah_ — the bottle isn’t going anywhere, Reign- _ah_.” Sloane sat up slowly, a tired smile on her face. Reign had a habit of eating every meal as if it were his last. “Slow down, hm?” the only reply to that was the furious sucking noises from the baby. “You’re gonna make yourself sick.”

 

Sloane shook her head in amusement. “Cute.” She forced herself to roll out of Jay’s bed and grabbed her overnight bag before padding into his bathroom. The Music Contributor took her time getting ready for the day, something she hadn’t been able to do since giving birth to her son. It was a nice change of pace.

 

“You were hungry, right? Is that why you were screaming your head off in here?” Almost an hour later, Sloane was dressed in one of Jay’s t-shirts and walking down the hall, towards the nursery. Faintly, she could hear the CEO rambling away. “You almost woke up _omma_ , you know.” She could almost picture Jay holding Reign carefully as if he were the most precious jewel in the world (which he was, of course).

 

“Do you think she’d agree to you two moving back in?” the Music Contributor found a shirtless (surprise, surprise) Jay in the center of the nursery, rocking from side to side; Reign was resting comfortably on his shoulder. The faint bruises on the singer’s neck looked as if they’d been made by fingers. “Hm? The house is too empty without you guys. _Appa_ hates it.”

 

“You do realize that Reign has absolutely no idea what you’re saying, right?” Sloane was leaning on the doorframe, looking amused. “He’s probably already thinking about his next meal.”

 

The singer grinned, craning his neck to look down at the baby. “My boy’s a good listener.” He beckoned Sloane over, and she crossed the room slowly, accepting the kiss to her forehead, then her lips. “Did you sleep well?”

 

“Mhm.” Sloane brushed some of Reign’s hair out of his face, only for the inky black curls to flop back into place. “It was nice to wake up on my own, for a change.” Reign’s head perked up at the sound of his mother’s voice, then flopped back down on to Jay’s shoulder. “Thanks for getting up with him.”

 

“It’s part of the job description, Doll.” The baby wiggled again, and Jay handed him over to Sloane. “He’s already been fed and changed. All that’s left is—”

 

“ _Pororo_ and tummy time, of course.” Sloane nuzzled her son’s cheek, breathing in his baby scent. “How’s my little prince, this morning?” Reign cooed happily, fisting a lock of Sloane’s black hair. “Did you have fun getting ready with daddy?”

 

Jay watched his little family interact, the grin on his face widening. “He smiled at me when I picked him up earlier. And he didn’t even cry when I gave him a bath.” Sloane made a show of widening her eyes.

 

“Really?” she pressed a loud kiss to the baby’s lips, making him laugh. “Were you being a big boy, Reign Park?” Reign let out an excited squeak, grabbing another fistful of his mother’s hair. “Pretty soon, you’ll be getting ready on your own, huh? You won’t even need mommy and daddy to help you.”

 

Sloane heard Jay move before she could feel him against her back. “Are you hungry? I made your favorite.” He detangled Reign’s fingers from her hair, ignoring how the raven-haired woman’s jaw dropped. “Go eat. You and I can talk after.”

 

“Talk about what?” But the CEO was already taking Reign back into his arms, shooing her out of the room. “Jay—”

 

“Go eat, Doll.” He made a funny face at the baby, earning himself a peal of breathless laughter. “We’ll be down in a minute.”

 

The Music Contributor did as she was told, a bemused smile on her face. She wasn’t sure what her baby daddy wanted to talk about, but if it meant that he was taking over Reign-duty, then she’d do whatever he told her to.

 

There were indeed banana pancakes (Sloane’s absolute favorite food in the world) in the kitchen, along with a small mountain of bacon, and enough scrambled eggs to feed an army. Jay must be on some kind of protein kick or something. It didn’t really matter all that much to Sloane, as long as she didn’t have to cook.

 

“I did good, right?” Jay padded into the kitchen, Reign in tow. The baby was nestled comfortably in the Baby Bjorn strapped to his father’s chest. “I figured since you agreed to stay the with us when you didn’t have to…” Jay plopped down across from Sloane, his hand on the back of Reign’s head. “It’s my way of saying thanks, I guess.”

 

“The food was thanks enough.” Sloane grabbed the syrup pitcher, upending it over her pancakes. “I didn’t need the extra sap.”

 

Jay rolled his eyes. “Yeah, okay.” He ducked his head, pressing a kiss to Reign’s forehead. “I was thinking about signing Reign up for a swimming lesson, today. Do you wanna come?”

 

“He’s barely three months old, Jay.” Sloane didn’t look up from her food. “You’re not dunking my baby into chlorine-infused pee water.”

 

“Don’t be like that.” Jay looked up at the raven-haired woman, an excited grin on his face. “I heard about this swim club from an SNL _sunbae_. It’s top of the line— very exclusive shit. Expensive, too.” Sloane remained unimpressed. “Reign- _ah_ , let’s tell _omma_ that learning to swim early is important.”

 

“Don’t use my kid to guilt me when I’m the one who's been changing his diapers.” Sloane pointed at Jay with her fork. “It won’t work.”

 

Jay let out a long-suffering sigh. “Stop being so mean, Doll.” Reign squealed, clapping his hands together. “See? Babyboy wants to learn how to swim.”

 

“Don’t tell me what to do.” Sloane went back to her food. “I’ll go, alright? But only because I have to make sure the kid doesn’t drown.” Unbeknownst to her, Jay pumped his fist in the air triumphantly.

 

“Reign- _ah_ , let’s go pick out a swim outfit, hm?” Jay stood up, pressing a loud kiss on the top of the baby’s head. “We’ll be back, Doll.” Sloane hummed but didn’t look up. She’d definitely take the chance to eat without a baby in her arms while she could.

 

About an hour later, Sloane was sitting on the edge of a private pool, watching her son have the time of his little life. For once, the raven-haired woman wasn’t worried about prying eyes. The pool house Jay brought them to was indeed ‘very exclusive shit’; meaning that anyone who happened to be around was famous in some way or the other. No one cared about Jay Park and his mysterious little family.

 

“Reign, look at mommy’s camera, baby.” Sloane was turning her phone all kinds of ways, attempting to get at least one good picture of Reign. She wasn’t having much luck, though. There was a baby-sized floating device positioned comfortably around the three-month old’s neck, leaving him to splash around as much as he wanted to. “He’s like a fish.”

 

“I told you.” Of course, Jay was standing not even a foot away from the baby, watching him like a hawk. “Babies are really good swimmers by instinct.” Reign squealed, bringing his tiny hand down on to the water’s surface. “Reign- _ah_ , you’re having so much fun, huh? _Appa_ did good, right?”

 

Sloane rolled her eyes. “Stop being corny and hold him up so I can get a picture.” The CEO made a face but did as he was told, earning himself an indignant squawk from the baby. “Babyboy, don’t be like that. Aren’t you gonna smile for mommy?”

 

Reign’s face scrunched up dangerously, and Jay made to put him back in the water. “I don’t think he wants—”

 

“No. Look, you can be in the picture, too. Just keep holding him and smile, okay?” Jay scoffed but did as he was told, lifting Reign on to his shoulders, and letting the baby’s upper body rest on the back of his head. “Jay, what the hell—”

 

“He’s fine, Doll. Take the picture.” Sloane scowled, holding her camera up. “Reign- _ah_ , let’s give _omma_ a smile, hm?”

 

“Is daddy cramping your style, little man?” the raven-haired woman was snapping happily away, grinning at the pout on her son’s face. “It’s only for a little while, baby. Hm?” Sloane poked her tongue out, and Reign dissolved into breathless laughter. “There’s my happy baby.”

 

Jay lifted Reign off of his shoulders, cradling him. “Reign- _ah_ , I think we’re starting to prune.”

 

“I think that’s enough playtime for today.” Sloane, finally satisfied with her pictures, put her phone away in favor of pulling out her son’s favorite towel. “It’s time for lunch, then naptime, I think.”

 

“Oh, our schedule’s packed full, huh?” The CEO waded over to the pool’s edge, pressing tiny, repetitive kisses to the baby’s sopping hair. “Let’s get out of the pool before _omma_ has a fit, hm?” he came to a stop between Sloane’s legs, and the raven-haired woman tried not to stare. She really fucking loved those tattoos.

 

“Schedules are made to be followed.” Sloane cleared her throat, then gathered Reign into her arms. “My little prince likes to have his bottle at 12:30 on the dot.” With Jay’s help, she was able to pat the baby dry fairly quickly, though his hair was a lost cause. Jay only hummed, sliding his hands up Sloane’s thighs. “What’s wrong?”

 

“Nothing, it’s just…” Jay cleared his throat, looking awkward all of a sudden. “You said something to me last night. Something really important.” Sloane raised an eyebrow. “Do you remember what it was?”

 

The raven-haired woman shrugged. “To be fair, I don’t remember doing much talking last night.” Reign cooed softly to himself, and she shifted the baby so that he was resting on her shoulder. “At least, not anything that made sense. Why?”

 

Jay stared at Sloane for a minute, then shook his head, smiling softly. It didn’t reach his eyes. “Nothing.” He waded a few meters away from the raven-haired woman before lifting himself out of the pool. “Don’t worry about it, Doll.”

~

“Okay.”

 

“Okay, what?” Sloane was sitting across from her baby daddy at some casual American barbeque restaurant, both of them waiting on their food. Reign was in the empty space next to Sloane, sleeping soundly in his carrier. “And let’s try being a bit wordier this time.”

 

Jay, who’d been slouching in his seat, grinned and sat up straight. He’d been more open with letting himself be seen in public with Sloane, but it was hard to let go of old habits. “Okay as in… what if I move into the penthouse?”

 

The Music Contributor snorted. “You’re serious?”

 

“Completely.” Jay shrugged, his cheeks coloring slightly. “You like living in the penthouse, and I like being with you two. It’s a no brainer.”

 

“Says you—” their waitress came back around then, a large tray in her hand, cutting off whatever Sloane had been about to say.

 

“Here we are.” The waitress was a tiny little thing, and her smile was large enough to take up half her face. Her nametag read ‘Stephanie’; Jay hated her, for reasons unknown to Sloane. “One All-American Burger.” She set down the singer’s plate first, and the way she shoved her chest into Jay’s face wasn’t subtle at all. “And one Bleu Cheese Dream.” The waitress set Sloane’s plate down with considerably less care. “Are you sure you don’t want a salad, instead?”

 

Sloane tilted her head, pretending to look thoughtful. “I don’t know sis, is it gonna stop you from being a desperate bitch?” Jay coughed into his drink, grinning, and Stephanie’s face fell into a scowl. “While you’re in the back mulling that over, why don’t you bring me a cup of hot water for the baby, hm?”

 

Stephanie huffed and spun on her heel, stalking off towards the bathroom. Jay sighed happily, resting his head on the palm of his hand. “You’re cutest when you’re being mean.” Sloane rolled her eyes playfully, leaning over to check on Reign. “Were you jealous, Doll?”

 

“Don’t flatter yourself.” Sloane lifted Reign into her arms, pressing a loud kiss to his cheek. The baby was slowly waking up from his nap, rubbing his eyes with his tiny fists. “I only said something because she damn near dropped my food trying to shove those fake ass tits in your face.”

 

“Mhm, sure.” Stephanie came back around again, but stayed silent, simply placing a cup of hot water down on the table before flouncing off again. Sloane reached into Reign’s baby bag for a bottle, smirking to herself. When she went to drop the bottle in the hot water, Jay stood up suddenly, grabbing the young mother’s wrist. “Yah, yah, yah; the last time you warmed the bottle up like that, he burned his tongue.”

 

Sloane rolled her eyes. “That was an accident, asshole.” Jay continued to glare at her, his hand still on Sloane’s wrist. “What? You already know that Reign doesn’t like formula. You think he’s gonna drink it cold?”

 

“Fine. But don’t leave the bottle in there for too long, this time.”

 

“How about you don't tell me what to do?” Sloane plopped the bottle right into the cup, pressing another kiss to her son’s chubby cheek. “Right, Reign? Let’s tell daddy to stay in his lane, hm?” the baby pouted, ducking his head towards his mother’s chest. “Seriously— you literally wake up hungry.”

 

After no more than three minutes, Jay grabbed the bottle, testing it on his hand before handing it over to Sloane. “Reign- _ah_ , tell _omma_ that growing boys need their milk.” Sloane popped the cap on the bottle, then lowered it to Reign’s mouth. The baby caught the nipple as soon as it touched his lips, suckling hungrily. “There we go; my boy always eats so well.”

 

“He takes after me.” At the sound of his mother’s voice, Reign’s eyes opened, and they flitted over her face curiously. “That’s right, baby; you’re smart like mommy.”

 

Jay reached over the table, taking Sloane’s plate. “So? What do you think?” he cut Sloane’s burger in half, then held one of the halves out for her to eat hands-free while she fed their son. “Me moving into the condo is less hassle. The house is already paid off, so if you want more space later…”

 

“Mhm.” After finishing the bottle halfway, Reign pushed it away. It was formula, and the baby preferred breastmilk. “Reign, I know you’re hungry, baby.” Reign reached for Sloane’s top, his face scrunched up dangerously, and she sighed. “Jay, your son’s spoiled.”

 

“Imagine what I go through when you’re not around.” The CEO reached into Reign’s baby bag, pulling out his blanket. “If you’re going to feed him, use this.”

 

Sloane took the blanket, draping it over her shoulder so that Reign was hidden from view. She pulled her top down before holding the baby up to her chest, and he latched on quickly, suckling noisily. “Brat.”

 

“ _Yah_ , my son just likes the finer things in life.” He held up a few French fries, and Sloane leaned forward, biting into them. “He gets that from me.” Sloane scoffed.

 

“Yeah, that’s what it is.”

 

“Excuse me.” Stephanie was standing in front of their table again, looking awkward. “I-I’m sorry, but there have been some complaints.” Sloane blinked; the young parents had been so focused on their son, that they didn’t notice the stares. “Is there any way you could move that to the restroom?” Sloane rolled her eyes; Stephanie didn’t look all that sorry if you asked her.

 

“Tell me something, Sarah—”

 

Stephanie scowled, gesturing to the nametag “Actually, it’s Stephanie.”

 

“That’s fascinating, Sally. Tell me, do you make it a habit to eat in restrooms?” Sloane tilted her head, looking genuinely curious. Across from her, Jay cringed. “Or are you too busy being a complete bitch—”

 

“Doll, come on—”

 

The waitress cleared her throat, her face going bright red. “The other customers are trying to eat. They don’t want to be forced to see that.” Sloane narrowed her eyes.

 

“See what, exactly?” The Music Contributor looked down; Reign was completely covered by his blanket. “My son eating? Please. Why don’t you run along, and tell your other customers to grow up?” Sloane caught the eye of one of the other patrons, an older man, and he quickly ducked his head. “Unbelievable.”

 

“Calm down, Sloane.” Jay turned his head, looking up at Stephanie. “I promise you that all the other customers would rather have my kid eating under that blanket than crying because he’s hungry.” The waitress opened her mouth to protest. “Bring your manager out if it’s really that big of a deal. I’m sure he’d agree with me.”

 

“Fine. I’ll be back around to refill your drinks.” Stephanie turned on her heel and flounced away. Sloane scowled, slouching down in her seat.

 

“I better not catch you leaving that bitch a tip, either.”


	15. XV.

_Serial: A publication that appears periodically, such as magazines, newspapers, or newsletters._

~

For some, unknown reason, Sloane thought she’d never have to see Bora again. Of course, that didn’t pan out.

 

“Reign, are you gonna let me put you down, now?” Sloane was pacing her living room, bouncing her son on her hip. “Son, I have to do your laundry at some point.”

 

Reign cooed softly, gracing Sloane with a gummy grin just as the doorbell rang. The baby had been fussy all day, refusing to be away from his mother for more than two minutes. “Jesus, you’re just as clingy as your daddy is.”

 

Sloane padded over to her front door, pressing a kiss to Reign’s cheek. The doorbell rang again, and the baby squealed. “Who’s at the door, baby? Hm?” the Music Contributor unlocked the door before swinging it open to reveal Bora. “Huh. This should be interesting.”

 

“Sloane- _ssi_ , hi.” The singer looked awful, and that wasn’t Sloane being bitter. Bora’s face was blotchy and swollen, and she was sniffling, holding a crumpled tissue to her face. “I-I was hoping we could talk.”

 

“What could you and I possibly have to talk about?” Sloane hadn’t forgotten the last time she encountered the singer and was understandably defensive. “Jay’s not here, so what do you want?”

 

“I think…” Bora’s eyed the hallway, looking nervous. “I was hoping we could talk inside? I don’t want the wrong person to hear what I have to say.”

 

Sloane raised an eyebrow. “Seriously? No.”

 

“Please?” Bora looked about ready to get on her knees and beg. “You’re the only person I can talk to, right now.”

 

Sloane rolled her eyes, but stepped to the side, giving the idol room to enter. “Unless you're looking for someone to slap you around, I’m not sure how I could be of any help.” The model nodded, mumbling a quiet thank you before stepping into the apartment, shutting the door behind herself. “I guess... did something happen at work?”

 

“No. But— but it’ll affect my job.” Bora’s face fell, and she looked as if she might start crying. “I-I… this couldn’t have come at a worse time. So many people are depending on me—”

 

“Bora, I can’t even begin to try to help you if you don’t tell me what’s wrong.” Sloane walked over to Reign’s play mat, setting him down on top of it. “What happened?”

 

“Well…” Bora sniffled, looking down at Reign. “I’m pregnant.”

 

Sloane had to literally fight the cringe off her face. Yikes. “And, I’m guessing congratulations isn’t the right word, right?” the raven-haired woman sat down on Reign’s play mat, making herself comfortable; she and Bora didn’t have a close enough relationship for physical contact. “Um… are you worried about your company? Do you think they’ll terminate your contract or something? Because I think that's illegal, here.”

 

“Of course not— I’ve already set up an appointment at a clinic.” Bora dabbed at her eyes primly. “It’s in two weeks, so my company won’t ever find about it.”

 

“Alright, well, it seems as if you already have everything figured out.” Sloane brushed some of Reign’s hair out of his face, looking confused. “I just don’t understand why you’re crying, or why you’re here, for that matter—”

 

“Well, that’s the thing.” Bora was staring down at Reign again, and Sloane was beginning to get frustrated. “Jay- _oppa_ ’s the father, but when I told him…”

 

Sloane could feel her heart stutter, then stop. Jay was the father? Her Jay? Sloane was gonna kill him; she was going to kill her baby’s father. Seriously. Sloane was going to kill Jay, bring the bastard back, then cut off his balls.

 

“… I mean, can you believe that?” the singer was still talking, sniffling every so often. “Jay- _oppa_ is the only guy I’ve ever slept with. Of course, he’s the father—”

 

“I’m sorry, it just sounded like you said that Jay was the father.” the raven-haired woman chuckled, shaking her head a bit; she must’ve heard wrong. “Just how far along are you? And how long have you been fucking Jay?”

 

Bora looked confused. “A-A little under two months. I don’t understand why he’s acting this way. Was Jay- _oppa_ upset when he found out that you were pregnant?”

 

“What? I don’t know. You were the one with him.” Reign let out a tiny whine, and Sloane pulled him on to her lap, pressing a kiss to the top of his head. “It was back at that restaurant in New York. Did he seem angry to you?”

 

“No…”

 

“Good. Let's go back to the part where you've been fucking my man—”

 

The front door beeped, and suddenly, Jay was in the living room. He dropped his bag by the door, kicking his shoes off. “Doll, you’ll never guess what happened, today...” he stopped short at the sight of his ex, frowning. “Bora? What are you doing here?”

 

“ _Oppa_!” Bora stood up quickly, wide-eyed. “I didn’t—” she turned to Sloane, looking betrayed. “You didn’t tell me you two were living together, now.”

 

The Music Contributor scoffed, folding her arms across her chest. “Bitch, you need to be glad that I'm not dragging your dumb ass across this room.”

 

“Did you really come all the way here? I told you that I’d call you—”

 

Sloane held her hand up. To Bora, she said, “Shut up. Jay doesn’t live here.” To her baby’s father, she said, “You got her _pregnant_?”

 

“No! Of course, not Sloane, come on.” Jay pushed his hair out of his face. “I wouldn’t do that to you. You know that.”

 

Bora frowned. “ _Oppa_ , why are you being like this—” Jay turned his gaze on her, and she stopped short.

 

“Seriously? You need to go home, Bora. You’re only here to cause trouble.” The model looked absolutely crushed. “Look, I’ve already set up the paternity appointment; I’ll call you.”

 

“I wasn’t—” she stood up, looking as if she might cry again. “You’re right. I’m sorry, I’ll go.” She bent over, grabbing her things, before brushing past Jay and out the door. As soon as the front door clicked shut, Sloane stood up, Reign planted securely on her hip.

 

Jay grinned at his little family. “There’s my favorite little guy.” He crossed the room, taking the baby into his arms. “Were you being good for _omma_?” Reign squealed, pressing a slobbery kiss to his father’s lips. 

 

Sloane watched the two interact, scowling. “You’re a piece of shit.”

 

The CEO grinned down at the baby, in his arms. “Reign- _ah_ , let’s tell omma that she’s overreacting, hm?”

 

“Don’t—” Sloane took Reign back into her arms, and earning herself an angry squawk. “Don’t fucking brush me off. You got her pregnant.”

 

Jay rolled his eyes, taking Reign back into his arms, again. “I already told you that Bora’s baby isn’t mine.” He brushed the baby’s hair back, only for it flop back into place. “I haven’t been with her since you and I got together.”

 

“So, two things about that,” Sloane folded her arms over her chest. “one being the fact that you and I aren’t together. The second thing is that Bora being pregnant means that you two fucked. Recently. She says that she’s just over a month along—”

 

“I haven’t been fucking anyone but you, Doll.” Jay set Reign down in his mobile crib, then turned to face the Music Contributor. “Me being here nearly every night should be proof enough of that.”

 

“That doesn’t mean shit to me.”

 

Jay scoffed, folding his arms over his chest. “Of course it doesn’t.” he walked over to the nearest couch, dropping down on it heavily. “Nothing I do is ever good enough for you.”

 

Sloane let out a humorless chuckle. “Are you really trying to turn this around on me? You’re the one who got your ex pregnant, Jaebeom.”

 

“I already told you that baby isn’t mine—”

 

“And I already told _you_ that I didn’t believe you.”

 

“I’ve already made an appointment for the paternity test.” Jay ran a hand through his inky black hair. “Maybe the results will make you believe me. Has he eaten, yet?”

 

“ _Stop_ —” Sloane took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. “Stop trying to change the subject, Jaebeom. We need to talk about this.”

 

“I don’t have shit else to say about Bora or her baby.”

 

Sloane wanted to scream. “How is it that you keep finding new ways to piss me off?” the rise in her voice made Reign whine. “I don’t know why I even bother—”

 

“Calm down, Doll—"

 

The Music Contributor scowled. “Don’t ever think that you have the right to tell me what to do.” Reign was full on crying now, reaching for his father. “You’ve been lying to me for who knows how long. No, _fuck you_ —”

 

“Can’t you see what you’re doing?” Jay was suddenly in Sloane’s face, and she paused; she’d never seen her baby’s father this angry. “You’re scaring my son, so calm the fuck _down_.”

 

She pushed at the CEO’s chest, but he didn’t move. “You need to step back, Jay.” Sloane pushed at Jay’s chest again, and he caught her hands, pinning them over her head. “I’m being serious— let me _go_.”

 

“You need to calm down, Sloane.” Jay let go of her hands in favor of cupping her cheeks. “Hm? I understand that you’re upset, baby, but I need you to trust me. Aiight?”

 

“How am I supposed to do that if your ex is coming here, crying about how you knocked her up?” Sloane finally managed to push the singer away, and he stumbled back slightly. “Bora’s pregnant, Jaebeom. And I don’t like her, but she doesn’t strike me as the type to sleep around.”

 

Jay scowled. “So… what? I’m a liar because she doesn’t seem like she sleeps around?” Sloane gave him a half-assed shrug. “That’s not fucking fair—”

 

“Oh, I’m not being _fair_ , now? Maybe you should go shack up with your new baby mama, then. She’ll probably make everything better for you.” Sloane padded over to Reign’s mobile crib, taking the baby into her arms. The little one immediately quieted, reaching for a lock of his mother’s hair. “I can take care of Reign on my own.”

 

Jay flinched back, looking as if he’d been slapped. “When have I ever projected myself to be that kind of person? I’m not going to just abandon my son, Sloane. And I’m not abandoning you, either.”

 

“That’s big talk for someone who’s ‘always in the studio’.” If Sloane hadn’t been holding Reign, you could be damn sure that there would have been air quotes involved. The Music Contributor scoffed, hitching Reign up higher on her hip. “You’re so full of shit—”

 

“Right, so me making sure my family’s taken care of is wrong, now?” Jay let out a humorless chuckle, “Seriously, Doll. When have I ever made you think that I didn’t want to be around you?”

 

Sloane raised an eyebrow. “Are you… do you really want me to answer that?”

 

“I already admitted that trying to stay away was a mistake, Doll. When are you gonna let that go?” Jay made a face, and Reign squealed. “Baby, I don’t know what else I’m supposed to do to make you believe me.”

 

The raven-haired woman shrugged. “I shouldn't have to keep going through shit like this, Jay. Especially when I didn't ask for it.” She turned on her heel, heading for the kitchen. “We'll start with the test results. For your sake, they better be negative.”


	16. XVI.

_Rejection Slip - A letter from an editor indicating that the publisher is not interested in the author’s submitted work._

~

If Sloane were being completely honest with herself, she’d admit that she missed Jay.

 

But the Music Contributor was stubborn, which translated to her avoiding the singer for the better part of two weeks. Of course, that didn’t go for Reign; he got to see his father nearly every night. Since Jay had the keycode to Sloane’s apartment, she just made sure she was locked in her bedroom whenever he dropped by.

 

Except, that didn’t happen, today.

 

Sloane was in her dining room/home office, so caught up with proofing a colleague’s article, that she hadn’t been watching the time. And that meant that she didn’t have a chance to lock herself in her bedroom just in case her baby’s father dropped by.

 

“You’re not hiding from me, today.” Jay’s voice was right next to Sloane’s ear, making her jump. “Does this mean that your tantrum’s over?”

 

“Fuck off.” Sloane pushed away from the dining table, a petulant scowl on her face as she stood up to stretch. “Reign’s napping in his room; go bother him.”

 

Jay pulled an envelope out of his back pocket, grinning. “Are you sure, Doll? I finally got the paternity test results back.” He waved the envelope in the air. “I thought you, would want to see them for yourself.” When Sloane made a grab for the envelope, he pulled it back. “Give me a kiss, first.”

 

“Go to hell.” This time, when she grabbed for the paper, Jay let her have it. Sloane opened the envelope quickly, removing the paper. She skimmed over the paper quickly, looking for a specific sentence. “…probability of paternity is 99.998%.” Sloane shoved the paper into Jay’s chest. “Fuck you, Jaebeom.”

 

Jay snatched the paper up, looking over it again. “ _Yah_.” Sloane stalked off in the direction of the kitchen, a smug smile on her face. “I read the paper before I got here and I still believed you.” He wrapped an arm around Sloane’s waist, preventing her from moving any further. “That wasn’t a very good joke, Doll.”

 

“You know I like seeing you sweat. I’m a good actress, right?” Jay hummed, moving Sloane’s inky black hair out of the way so he could kiss her neck. “Have you told Bora, yet? What did she say?”

 

“She should’ve gotten her copy of the results, already.” The CEO waddled them over to a nearby kitchen counter. “I don’t want anything to do with her.” He lifted Sloane up on to the counter, then moved to stand between her legs. “You believe me now, right?”

 

“Mhm.” Sloane ran her fingers through Jay’s hair, tugging on it slightly. “I guess… I’m sorry for blowing up at you, that day. You didn’t deserve it.”

 

“Not that I don’t appreciate the gesture…” Jay raised an eyebrow. “but you used to hate apologizing Doll. Motherhood must be making you soft.”

 

Sloane scoffed at that, mushing the singer’s head back. “How about we see how soft I am with my foot up your ass?” Jay laughed just as a loud cry sounded from the nursery. “Yeah, yeah; laugh it up while you go get your son.”

 

Sloane was in the middle of pulling out ingredients for a simple lunch when Jay came back ten minutes later. Reign was sitting on the singer’s shoulders, yanking on his father’s hair, and babbling away. “Doll, you didn’t tell me that Reign learned how to stand on his own.”

 

“That’s because it only counts when he doesn’t have to use the bars on his crib.” Jay scoffed, lifting Reign off his shoulders. “I’m making myself a sandwich. You want one?”

 

“Yeah.” Jay set Reign in his highchair, then turned to smile at Sloane. “You’re cooking for me now, too? You tryin’ to get wifed up, huh?”

 

The Music Contributor rolled her eyes. “Fuck you and your sandwich.” She felt Jay come up behind her but didn’t push him away. “I can’t make anything if you’re all up on me, you know.”

 

“What if I told you…” Jay’s voice was right next to Sloane’s ear, and she shivered. “that you didn’t have to cook for me to eat?”

 

Sloane grinned at the implication. She had no problem admitting that Jay’s mouth was amazing when he wasn’t using it to talk. “You’re insatiable. Reign’s right there.” Jay hummed, and his hands slithered down Sloane’s front. “Jay, I’m serious...”

 

“Then let me have you after he’s down for the night.” Jay grabbed the young mother’s hips, turning her around to face him. There was a mischievous glint in his eyes. “Hm? You’ve been starving me for weeks, now.” Behind the couple, Reign let out an excited squeal, slapping his hands down on the tray in front of him. “See? Babyboy wants a sister.”

 

Sloane laughed out loud, ducking away from Jay. “You’re unbelievable.” She padded over to Reign’s highchair, swooping the baby into her arms. “Isn’t that right Little Man? Tell your dad he’s not getting any of this unless he wraps it up.” The five-month-old ducked his head, mouthing at his mother’s chest. “ _Jesus_ , you literally wake up hungry—”

 

“Don’t tease my boy.” Jay took Reign in his arms, pressing a loud kiss to his cheek. “Hm? Reign-ah, tell omma you’re a growing boy.” Sloane watched the singer walk over to the refrigerator. “Doll, have you been using that pump I bought?”

 

“His bottles are on the top shelf in the fridge.” Sloane took the seat next to Reign’s highchair. “You didn’t say anything about pumping being painful as hell.”

 

Jay ducked his head into the refrigerator, “How the hell would I have known that?” he emerged with a small bottle that Reign immediately reached for. “I only bought it because mom said it was more efficient.”

 

“Mhm.”

 

Jay popped the cap on the bottle, and when he lowered his hand, Reign grabbed it with his own, eagerly guiding the bottle into his mouth. “You don’t have to use it if it’s hurting you, baby.” The CEO watched his son eat with a small grin on his face. “I don’t think Little Man minds either way. Isn’t that right, babyboy?” Reign didn’t answer, of course; he was too busy staring over at his mother while he ate.

 

Sloane bit her lip, watching Jay feed their son. Her baby daddy was cute, she supposed. Cute enough to father the rest of her kids. If he took his shirt off, maybe even more so.

 

“…Doll?” Sloane blinked, snapping back into attention. “You spaced out on me, baby. What’s up?”

 

“Nothing. Stop calling me Doll.” The raven-haired woman sat up straighter, smiling down at Reign, and he reached out for her. “Actually, I was thinking… you should— we should probably live together.” Jay’s jaw physically dropped. “I mean, only if you want to. You really don’t have to—”

 

“Sloane, shut up.” Jay crossed the room, planting himself between the Music Contributor’s legs. “Are you serious? You wanna live together?”

 

If Sloane’s skin had been fair enough, she’d be blushing. “We might as well. Right?” she looked down, fumbling with her fingers. “Reign… he deserves to have the both of us, as much as possible.”

 

“Oh.” Reign finished his bottle, and Jay tossed it into the sink. He lifted Reign up to his shoulder, patting the baby’s back gently. “Is that the only reason?”

 

Sloane shrugged, looking awkward. She hated feelings. “If I say no, are you gonna be weird about it?” Jay stared at her, a smug look on his face; Reign let out a loud burp, then giggled. “What am I saying? Of course, you’re gonna be weird about it—”

 

“Calm down, Sloane.” The singer was teasing her, now. “I’m moving in, aiight? You can’t change your mind.”

 

The Music Contributor ducked her head, busying her hands by attempting to smooth Reign’s hair down. “Shut up.” Reign squealed, wriggling around in Jay’s arms to get to his mother. “You better not take all my closet space.”

 

Jay chuckled. “I’ll try not to, Doll.” He leaned forward, pressing their lips together briefly before pulling away again. “You know what this means, right? You’re mine.”

 

“Is that right?” Sloane raised an eyebrow. “You’re lucky I like it when you get all possessive on me.” Reign let out another squeal, and she took him in her arms. “Reignie, tell daddy that he’s stuck with us, now.” The baby gave his mother a gummy grin, then stuffed his fist into his mouth.

 

“Mhm, you say that like it’s a bad thing.” Jay pressed a kiss to the back of his son’s head. “Oh, before I forget— my parents think we should give him a Korean name before the dol.” Since Reign was already pushing six months, Jay wanted to hurry up and make all the necessary preparations before his _doljanchi_ , or first birthday.

 

“If it’s something I’ll be able to pronounce.” Sloane pulled Reign’s fist out of his mouth, replacing it with a pacifier. “Did you have anything in mind?”

 

“Yeah, I was thinking of Jaehwan.” Reign’s head whipped around at the sound of his father’s voice, and Jay looked down at him, grinning. “It kind of goes with Reign, right?” the baby in question smiled around his pacifier. “He seems to like it.”

 

Sloane tried out the name softly. “Jaehwan…?” Jay’s eager nod made her smile. “I mean, I guess it’s kinda cute. It sounds like your name, almost.”

 

“Yeah, and for our babygirl, I was thinking Jaehee. You can pick her English name.” That made Sloane roll her eyes. “ _Yah_ , being proactive is a good thing, Doll.”

 

“I already told you that my black ass wasn’t having another baby.” She hopped off the counter, flipping her jet-black hair over her shoulder. “My babyboy, should we go watch _Pororo_? Hm? We can have tummy time, too.”

 

“What about my sandwich, Doll?” Sloane scoffed, pushing at Jay’s chest, and he stepped back. “ _Aigoo_ , I knew it was too good to be true.”

 

The Music Contributor started towards the kitchen, her baby’s father hot on her heels. “I’m the one who had to push your son’s big head out of my snatch. You should be making me a sandwich.”

 

“Oh, so he’s just my son, now.” Reign squealed, giving Jay a tiny wave with his chubby fingers. “His head’s not that big, Doll. Neither is mine, as a matter of fact—”

 

Sloane giggled, setting Reign down on his play mat near the television. “Hey, you don’t have to take my word for it. Your mom agrees with me.” She grabbed the remote off a nearby couch, using it to switch the television on. The sounds of _Pororo_ , what Sloane liked to think was Reign’s favorite show, filled the air.

 

“You’ve been talking to my mom?” Jay’s voice was low against Sloane’s ear. “And here I was, under the impression that you didn’t do parents, Doll.” He wrapped his arms around the young mother’s waist, pulling her back against his front.

 

Sloane hummed, ducking out of the singer’s grasp. “I don’t. I just made an exception for Reign’s grandma.” She padded over to the mobile crib she kept near the kitchen, grabbing the baby’s favorite stuffed music note, a gift from Kiseok. “She loves me, by the way.”

 

“Mhm, didn’t I say that she would?” Jay was sitting on the couch now, his shirt long gone (surprise, surprise). “She’s always asking me to bring you and babyboy around for a visit.” He watched as Sloane placed the stuffed music note next to Reign on his play mat. “We can go if you want.”

 

“Sure. Just let me know.” Jay patted his lap; Sloane rolled her eyes, but went over to the couch, allowing Jay to pull her down. “I like your mom, she’s cute. Even when she’s constantly asking me when we’re gonna have another baby.”

 

Jay wrapped his arms around Sloane’s waist, nosing at her neck. “Yeah, well she’s always asking me about when I’m gonna propose.” She could feel the singer grinning against her skin. “Do you realize how hard it is not to tell her that you’re the one with the relationship phobia?”

 

“Maybe I’m just not the marrying type.” Sloane leaned back, folding her arms over Jay’s. It was quiet for a moment; the couple too caught up in watching Reign shuffle around on his play mat. “Do you even want to marry me?”

 

“I’m not the type to just go around, racking up a string of baby mamas, Doll.” Sloane scowled, moving to sit up, and Jay’s arms tightened around her waist. “I’m serious. I’ve already told you that you were mine, Sloane. All I’m waiting on is for you to realize it for yourself.”

~

“Wait. I need you to run that by me, again.”

 

Sloane scowled. She should have never let Raina order Hennessy. The two women were having a Girl’s Night Out, which basically meant getting drunk at dinner. Reign had been at the studio with Jay, hopefully (more for the CEO’s sake) the two were at home by now.

 

“You heard me.”

 

“Yeah, bitch. And I want you to say it again.”

 

The Music Contributor was pouting now, her arms folded over her chest. Sometimes, she hated her best friend. “Jay wants to marry me.” Raina squealed, attracting the attention of a few of the other patrons. “He says that he’s waiting on me—”

 

“To get over your relationship phobia, blah, blah, blah. Sloanie, that’s amazing!” The brunette woman clapped her hands together excitedly. “Jay’s a really good guy.”

 

“I know that, Rain. It’s just…” Sloane ducked her head, using her fork to poke at her chicken fettuccine. “you’ve seen me in serious relationships before. I’m gonna fuck this up; something’s wrong with me—”

 

Raina held her hand up, and Sloane cut herself off abruptly. “There’s nothing wrong with you, Sloane. All of your exes were dicks.” When Sloane tried to respond, the brunette simply glared. “I’m serious. You need to stop doing this to yourself.”

 

“I’m only being honest, Raina. Every serious relationship I’ve been in turned to shit.” The Music Contributor slouched in her seat, letting her fork clatter on the table. “I can’t— I have Reign now. I can’t let him get hurt.”

 

“Then stop sabotaging yourself.” Raina drained her wine glass before tucking back into her filet mignon. “If you ask me, Jay’s made it pretty clear that he’s not going anywhere. You just need to stop overthinking everything; let things happen.”

 

Sloane scoffed. “You make it sound so easy.”

 

“Because it is, bitch.” Raina was grinning, now, and she used her fork to steal some of her bestie’s plate. “It’s time to retire your hoe title, sis. Jay’s making an honest woman out of you.”

~

Nearly three hours later, Sloane was tip-toeing into the penthouse, her heels in her hand. There was no way she’d take the chance of waking Reign up. “Doll?” Jay was laying on the couch, watching the muted television. The receiving part of the baby monitor set was sitting on the coffee table in front of him. “You’re back already?”

 

“Mhm. I missed my babies.” Sloane shut the door behind herself, dropping her shoes on the soft carpet. She padded over to the couch her baby’s father was on, dropping down on his chest. “How was going to the studio with Reign?”

 

“Better than I expected, actually.” Jay rubbed Sloane’s back softly, kissing the top of her head. “Babyboy would smile and started wiggling in his walker every time the music came on. And he especially enjoyed the attention he was getting from Hoody.”

 

When Jay nodded, Sloane smiled, letting her eyes flutter shut. “He’s such a little flirt; he gets that from you.” She could feel the singer laughing before she heard it. “I hope you put headphones over his ears.”

 

“I think about ten people told me that Reign was my twin, today.” Sloane hummed, already half asleep. When Jay pressed his fingers into her spine, she let out a satisfied sigh. “But I don’t know… every time I see him smile, I see you.”

 

Sloane snorted. “Corny.”

 

The CEO chuckled. “You love it.” A small cry sounded through the baby monitor, and Sloane made to get up. “ _Ani_.”

 

“I need to go check on him.” Jay’s arms tightened around the raven-haired woman’s back. “Jay—”

 

“I mean it; you’ve been gone for hours. I’ve been sitting out here, waiting for you to come home so we could cuddle.” Sloane propped her chin up on the singer’s chest, scowling. “He’s fine, Doll. I promise.” He craned his neck, pressing their lips together briefly.

 

“He better be.” Jay grinned down at her, and she flushed. God, when did she start flushing? “Do you remember the day we took Reign for his first swimming lesson?”

 

Jay nodded once. “Mhm. Why?”

 

“Because…” Sloane bit her lip, suddenly nervous. “you asked me if I remembered saying anything the night before. And I said no, right?”

 

“Yeah.” Jay raised an eyebrow. “What’s with the sudden walk down memory lane, Doll? Feeling nostalgic?”

 

“Shut up.” Sloane reached up to pinch Jay’s nipple, and he groaned. “I’m asking because I lied.”

 

The CEO winced, slapping Sloane’s hand away from his chest. “Lied about what? And did it really call for the abuse?”

 

The Music contributor sat up, pushing her hair behind her ear. “I lied about not remembering anything.” Jay pulled her back down, and she went easily, resting her head directly over his heart. “I remember telling you that I loved you.”

 

“Oh.” Sloane could feel the singer’s breath hitch. He hadn’t been expecting to hear that. “Did you… did you mean it?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

Jay didn’t say anything for a while, choosing to continue tracing shapes over Sloane’s skin. “Then… why’d you lie about it?”

 

“I don’t know. I’ve never— I’ve never been good with relationship stuff. I didn’t wanna fuck things up, I guess.” Jay hummed, his fingers moving up to thread themselves in Sloane’s hair. “I’m sorry.”

 

“Do you feel…” Jay trailed off, clearing his throat somewhat nervously. “how do you feel, now? Has anything changed?” Another cry sound through the baby monitor, and this time, Jay let Sloane stand up.

 

“You tell me.”

 

Sloane was only gone for a minute, and when she came back, a grumpy Reign was in her arms. “Reign’s forehead is hot. Was he fussy earlier?” Jay sat up, pulling Sloane down on his lap. “He wouldn’t even let me put him back in his crib.”

 

“A little; but he’s always a little fussy whenever you’re not around.” Jay brushed the baby’s hair off his forehead, replacing it with his hand. “Babyboy, are you catching another cold?” Reign only cooed softly, laying his head down on his mother’s shoulder. “Poor kid.” Sloane patted her son’s diaper-clad bottom softly, pressing a kiss to his temple.

 

“I don’t have to go in, tomorrow.” Sloane turned her body so that she was facing Jay. “I can stay with him if you need to go into the studio.” She went to stand up again, and the singer wrapped an arm around her waist, keeping her in place.

 

“How am I supposed to focus on business if my little man is sick?” he moved Sloane’s dark hair off her shoulder, kissing the skin it revealed. “ _Hyung_ ’ll be able to handle everything on his own for one day; don’t worry about it.”

 

Reign whimpered, and Sloane fumbled around for his pacifier. “I don’t remember saying that I was worried.” Jay handed Sloane a _Pororo_ pacifier, and she quickly popped it into the baby’s mouth. “Reign and I will be fine on our own. Right baby?” Reign blinked up at his mother, pouting around his pacifier

 

“You’re not changing my mind, Doll.”

 

Sloane shrugged, leaning back into Jay’s chest. “If you’re sure.” Jay nodded once, reaching around her to rub Reign’s back. “Thank you.”

 

“It’s my job. Isn’t that right, babyboy?” the six-month-old reached for his father, and Jay didn’t hesitate to oblige him. “It’s _appa_ ’s job to stay home and take care of you.” Sloane smiled at the sight, sliding off the singer’s lap.

 

“You’re just a regular family man, now. Aren’t you?” she stood up, stretching her arms in the air. “I’m gonna go change. Try to get him to sleep if you can.”

 

“Mhm. Hurry back.” Sloane wouldn’t admit it, but she did exactly as she was told. Not even five minutes later, she was walking back into the living room, clad only in one of Jay’s t-shirts.

 

Jay was still on the couch, whispering in Reign’s ear. The baby was already fast asleep, drooling on his shoulder. Sloane padded over to the couch, placing her hand on top of the six-month old’s head. “Cutie.” To Jay, she said, “Do you think we should give him medicine now, or in the morning?”

 

“I’ll give it to him in the morning if he’s still feverish.” The CEO stood up carefully, making sure he didn’t jostle the baby in his arms. He looked Sloane up and down, smirking at what he saw. “You’re wearing my clothes, now?”

 

“Don’t start.” Sloane grabbed Jay’s waist, pulling him close. “I wear your shirts all the time.”

 

“It’s different, now.” Jay ducked his head, pressing his lips against Sloane’s. “You really love me?”

 

Sloane scowled, rolling her eyes. “God, am I ever gonna hear the end of this?” the CEO only laughed, pressing a kiss to the top of her dark hair. “I’m serious; you know I hate talking about mushy shit.” She kept her voice low, not wanting to bother Reign in his sleep.

 

“Mhm, but you know that I love watching you get all flustered, Doll.” If Jay hadn’t been holding their child, Sloane would have punched him in the chest. “Aiight, how about this? I won’t talk about feelings unless you bring it up.” Sloane looked away, feeling flustered, again. “Okay?”

 

“Whatever. Stop teasing me, and go put Reign in his crib.” Sloane turned away, sighing softly. She did hate talking about feelings. “I’m going to bed.”

 

“I’ll be in there soon.”

 

Jay made good on his promise. He was already in bed when Sloane finished her nightly routine. “You always take forever.”

 

“You like having a pretty baby mama, right?” the Music Contributor crawled on top of the bed, straddling the singer’s chest. “Well, beauty takes time, jackass.”

 

“But I missed you, Doll.” Jay rubbed the top of Sloane’s thighs, grinning. “We should have had Reign sleep in the co-sleeper, just in case he wakes up.”

 

Sloane pouted, draping herself over Jay’s body. “And if I had been in the mood to have your dick down my throat? Would you feel the same, then?”

 

Jay scoffed. “That’s not a good example.” One of his hands went to Sloane’s ass, palming it generously. “You never want to give me head.”

 

“No, you don’t do anything good enough to warrant me giving you head.” Sloane gave the singer a teasing smirk. “Step your game up, and you’d never go a day without getting your dick wet.”

 

“Tease.” Jay gave Sloane’s ass a sharp smack, and she squealed. “Reign can probably hear you from his crib. I thought you didn’t want him waking up?”

 

“Ass, this is exactly why I’ll never—” A loud cry sounded through the baby monitor. “Son of a bitch.”

 

“Told you.” The Music Contributor rolled off him, scowling. “Bring him in here, Doll. He probably just doesn’t want to be by himself.” Sloane waved Jay off, walking out of the bedroom. Not even a minute later, she was back, a grumpy Reign in her arms.

 

“I think his fever’s getting worse, Jay.” She walked over to the bed, setting the baby down on his stomach. Almost immediately, Reign toppled on to his father’s chest, face first. “I should give him the medicine, right?”

 

Jay hummed, patting the baby’s back gently. “Yeah, it’ll put him to sleep.” Reign squirmed around, cooing to himself. Sloane headed into the bathroom, “Jaehwanie, should _appa_ sing you to sleep? Would you like that?” Reign blinked up at his father sleepily, the tears in his eyes threatening to spill over.

 

“Give him this.” Sloane was walking out of the bathroom, a small bottle of Children’s Tylenol in her hand. “He’ll be hungry soon, so I have to go make him a bottle.” Jay held his hand out, and she dropped the medicine and the medicine dropper into it. “Three drops are probably all you’ll be able to do; Reign hates that stuff.”

 

“Mhm.” Jay uncapped the bottle, dipping the dropper inside. He used his other hand to tap Reign’s bottom lip, and the baby immediately opened his mouth. “That’s my good boy.” The singer hurried to drop the medicine on Reign’s tongue, laughing when his face scrunched up at the taste. “I know, I know... I'm sorry.”

 

When Sloane came back into the bedroom, Reign was sitting up on his father’s chest, looking dangerously close to tears. “Okay, okay.” She sat on the edge of the bed, uncapping the bottle, and handing it over. “Here, you brat.” Reign reached for the bottle eagerly, helping his daddy guide it into his mouth. Afterward, Jay shifted the baby so that he was laying down on his back while he ate.

 

“Come lay down, Doll.” Sloane rolled her eyes at the nickname, but crawled over the CEO’s legs, snuggling into his side. For a moment, the sound of Reign eating was the only thing that filled the silence. “I don’t think I’ve told you this, but I love you. You know that, right?”

 

Sloane smiled, already half asleep. “I had a feeling. ”


	17. XVII.

_Simultaneous Submission - To send a submission to more than one publisher/agent at one time. This is unacceptable to some, okay to others._

~

“Kiseok asked me to go to some awards show with him.”

 

Sloane and Raina were out shopping. It’s been getting warmer, and she needed to buy appropriate clothing for her and her son. It was the perfect time to do it, as Reign was spending the day with his grandparents.

 

“Mhm. The one in December, right?” Sloane was looking down at her phone, frowning. “Jay asked me to go with him, too.” Speaking of her baby’s father, she’d been trying to get in touch with Jay for almost an hour now— she wanted to ask him if he needed anything while she was out. But the singer must’ve been busy; all the Music Contributor’s calls had been screened, and he wasn’t replying to her texts.

 

“Are you gonna go?”

 

“I’m not sure, yet.” Sloane stopped walking, shoving her phone back into her purse. Maybe Jay couldn’t hear his phone in the studio. “I’m not sure if I’m down with a night full of people gawking at me as if I’m a zoo exhibit.”

 

Raina laughed, grabbing Sloane’s arm, and guiding her towards another trendy boutique. “Please, you should be used to it, by now.”

 

“That doesn’t mean I like…” Sloane trailed off at the sight of a familiar face. “Rains, please tell me that I’m hallucinating.”

 

“What, did you find a store that carries larger than a size two?” The brunette turned her head, just in time to see Jay exiting a jewelry store with another woman, his hand on her back. “ _Oh_. Okay, Sloane—” But the Music Contributor was already on the move, heading towards the couple. Raina nearly had to run to catch up with her. “You don’t know anything for sure.”

 

Sloane doesn’t think she’s ever been this angry, before. Not even when Jay tricked her into coming out to Seoul. “Even more reason for me to find out what’s going on.” The woman next to Jay stood on her toes, pressing a kiss to the singer’s cheek. “Do I still need to wait around for more proof?” she shrugged Raina off, continuing her trek.

 

“Sloanie—”

 

“Jaebeom?” Sloane came to a stop in front of her baby’s father, preventing him from going any further. “I wasn’t expecting to see you here.” Despite the situation, she relished in the way Jay’s face morphed in confusion.

 

“Doll?” if Sloane hadn’t been so pissed off, she probably would have thought about how well her boyfriend(?) pulled off the confused puppy look. “What are you doing here? Where’s Jaehwan?” Since the pair had decided on Reign’s Korean name, Jay hasn’t called the baby anything else.

 

“Well, shit.” Raina hitched her bags up to her shoulder. “I’ll be in the food court if you need me.” Sloane didn’t even see her best friend slink away.

 

“Reign is at your mom’s. I’m here because we needed new spring clothes.” Sloane folded her arms over her chest. “I wanted to get you something, but you weren’t answering my calls, so...”

 

The woman Jay was with smiled, clapping her hands together. “Is this the famous Sloane?” when Jay nodded, she stepped forward holding her hand out. “I’m Choi Minah. You’re even prettier than in the pictures Jay- _ssi_ had.”

 

“I…” Sloane shook Minah’s hand, confused. “I am?”

 

“Of course!” After a quick handshake, Minah let go of Sloane’s hand, and it fell limply to her side. “You should have seen this brat, fumbling around for his phone. It was adorable.”

 

Jay was blushing now, his hand on the back of his head. “I wasn’t— it wasn’t like that.”

 

“ _Yah_. What did I say about lying?” Minah punched the singer in the arm lightly, then turned back to Sloane. “He picked out the most beautiful piece—”

 

“ _Noona_!” the CEO whined; it was then that Sloane noticed the shopping bag he was carrying.

 

“You bought me something?” Sloane blinked up at her baby’s father, smiling softly. Jaebeom shook his head; the poor guy’s face was bright red, now. “Can I see?”

 

Minah’s phone beeped, and she looked down at it. “Oh, shoot. I have another schedule. Good luck, yeah?” she ran off, leaving the couple alone.

 

“So… you’ve been sneaking around on me, huh?” Sloane teased, taking a step forward. She placed her hand on Jay’s waist, twisting her fingers in the material of his shirt. “How long has this been going on?”

 

“Are you mad?” Jay grimaced, one of his hands going to the back of his head. “Minah is just my cordi- _noona_ , I swear. I wanted to get you something for your birthday, and she agreed to help me out.”

 

“Mhm, is, that, right?” Sloane tilted her head up, and Jay appeased her need for a kiss. “You’re lucky you’re cute.” She reached for the bag, and the singer moved it behind his back. “Jay—”

 

Jay laughed, “It’s your birthday present, Doll. You can wait a few more days.”

 

“But the suspense is killing me,” Sloane whined, pouting a bit. “Let me open it now, and I’ll give you head in the car.”

 

“Yeah, right.” Jay scoffed and grabbed the Music Contributor’s hand, leading her further away from the jewelry store. “How about I buy you those shoes you’ve been talking about, instead?”

 

Sloane grinned victoriously; she loved the sound of that.

~

“Jay, I’ve been thinking.”

 

“Mhm.” The singer was typing away on his phone; if Sloane didn’t know how much of a workaholic her baby daddy was, she’d be suspicious. “Use the credit card I gave you if you’re buying it, Doll.”

 

“What— _no_. Stop calling me Doll.” Sloane straddled Jay’s hips, taking the phone out of his hand, and throwing it across the bed. “I’m the mother of your firstborn. Pay attention to _me_.”

 

The corners of Jay’s mouth quirked. “I was in the middle of setting reservations for your birthday, you know.” Sloane scoffed, draping herself over his body. “What’s wrong?”

 

“I want another baby.” She folded her arms over the CEO’s chest, resting her chin on top of them. The young mother chose to ignore the smug smirk on his face. “Reign isn’t even a year old, yet. Something’s wrong with me.”

 

“There’s nothing wrong with you.” Jay’s fingers were trailing over Sloane’s spine in a soothing motion. “You just like having my babies.”

 

“Fuck off.”

 

A tiny whimper sounded through the baby monitor. “You don’t have to keep taking the pill if you don’t want to.” Jay grinned down at Sloane, trailing a thumb over her bottom lip. “You know that I’ll take care of you.”

 

“Mhm. So, you want me walking around here barefoot and pregnant for the next three years?”

 

“I’d prefer it, Doll.”

 

Sloane shook her head, a small smile on her face when she felt Jay’s hand slide over her ass. “Reign needs to wake up from his nap, soon.”

 

“I’ll try to be quick, then.” Jay sat up, pulling Sloane up with him. “A couple more minutes of sleep never hurt anyone. You, of all people, should know that.”

 

“I do, as a matter of fact. I also know that you’re putting our son down at bedtime.” Sloane wrapped her arms around Jay’s neck. “I’m glad we’re on the same page.”

 

The singer dropped a kiss on Sloane’s nose. “Always.” His hands moved under her shirt, teasing the skin. “Does this mean you’re not taking the pill, anymore?” Sloane shrugged, suddenly coy. “I’m not letting you take it back—”

 

“I haven’t taken the pill in two weeks.” Jay stared at her, speechless, for once. “Are you mad?”

 

“Why would I be mad?” the singer moved quickly, and before Sloane knew it, she was looking up at him. “My three-year plan just became a two-year plan.” Jay’s lips were on Sloane’s collarbone, sucking tiny bruises into the skin.

 

“You still… _oh_.” the Music Contributor let out a breathy moan, her hands going to the singer’s hair. “You still have to wear a c-condom. Until after Reign’s birthday—”

 

Jay’s finger brushed over Sloane’s nipple; she wasn’t wearing a bra. “Is that right?”

 

“I’m serious,” Sloane whined, her hips canting up. “I already planned our outfits.”

 

“Ah…” Jay pulled Sloane’s (his) shirt over her head, throwing it across the room. “We’re wearing couple outfits to the party? That’s cute, Doll.”

 

“Stop it.” Sloane grabbed Jay’s chin, pressing their lips together in a bruising kiss. Her other hand, trailed down his chest, stopping at the waistband of his shorts. “Reign has a matching outfit, too.”

 

Jay laughed against her lips. “And I’m the corny one?” He grabbed Sloane’s hand, placing it over his noticeable bulge. “You’re lucky I love you.”

 

“Mhm… is that so?” Sloane squeezed Jay’s dick through his shorts, grinning when he groaned. “You’re such an asshole.”

 

“Are you sure?” Jaebum pushed Sloane back down, crawling on top of her. “Because the way I see it… you’re the one who’s about to wake up all the neighbors, Doll.” He hiked her legs up, hooking his arms at her knees.

 

Sloane scoffed, reaching between their bodies to push Jay’s shorts down. “You’re the one who screams like a little bitch—” Jay shoved her panties to the side, bottoming out in one, swift motion. “ _fuck_.” He pulled out almost immediately, grinning wolfishly. “ _Jaebeom_.”

 

“Are you still talkin’ shit?”

 

“Fucker.” Sloane turned her head to the side, her hips canting up. “You’re supposed to be wearing a condom.”

 

The CEO shrugged, wrapping her legs around his waist. “I forgot.” He rolled his hips then, letting out a low moan when they slapped against the back of Sloane’s thighs. “Damn, you feel good—”

 

“Then go faster.” Sloane grabbed the back of Jay’s neck, pulling his head down so their lips could meet. “Hm? I don’t want it slow, baby.”

 

“God, you’re spoiled.” Jay fucked into Sloane slowly, tugging on her bottom lip with his teeth. “You know that, right?”

 

Sloane pouted, digging her heels into his back. “It’s your own fault.” She squeezed around Jay’s cock, smirking when his hips faltered. “So, stop being a dick, and fuck me.”

 

“Nah.” He rolled them over, digging his fingers into Sloane’s thighs to steady her. “Make yourself cum, if you want it so bad.”

 

“Fine.” Sloane planted her feet on the bed, using her thighs to lift herself up. She dropped down with a needy whine, making them both moan. “You’re lucky your dick is bigger than my dildo.” She planted her hands-on Jay’s chest, using it for leverage while she rode him.

 

“If I find it, I’m throwing it away— _fuck_.” Jay palmed Sloane’s ass, aiming a sharp smack to the skin. “I’m the only one that gets to fuck you.” The Music Contributor scoffed, digging her nails into his chest. “I’m serious; we both know who this pussy belongs to.”

 

Despite the situation, Sloane couldn’t help but laugh. “Jesus Christ.” She grinded over the singer’s dick, biting her bottom lip. “I-I’m leaving your corny ass as soon as this is over.”

 

“Yeah, right.” Jay smacked her ass again, making her squeal. “Say it.”

 

“Fuck off.” Sloane didn’t trust (or like, as a matter of fact) the mischievous look in her baby daddy’s eyes. She started up an even pace, rolling her hips eagerly. “I’m not saying shit.”

 

Jay moved both of his hands to Sloane’s hips, stilling her. “Yeah?” he fucked into her slowly, making sure she felt every inch of him. “Maybe I should get up right now, and not let you cum at all.”

 

Sloane bent over, pressing their lips together. “You’d really leave me, baby?”

 

“Mhm, maybe.” Jay grinned into their kiss, rolling his hips. “Tell me what I wanna hear and you won’t ever find out.” Sloane let out a strangled moan, her eyes rolling back. “Hm…? Use your words, Doll.”

 

Sloane angled her hips down, looking smug. “Mhm… so you still think you’re runnin’ shit around here, huh?” she bounced on Jay’s cock, letting out sinful little moans and whimpers. “I— _shit_. I can make myself feel good all on my own.”

 

“Fuck.” Jay was staring up at Sloane, an awed look on his face. “Just like that, Doll.” He groaned, tightening his grip on her waist, and guiding her over his dick. “…so fucking wet for me.”

 

The Music Contributor pushed herself back up, rotating her hips eagerly; she could feel Jay dragging against her walls, and the heat in her lower belly was starting to build. “I’m close.” Her voice was nothing more than a breathy whisper. “Jay, I— _oh my God_.”

 

“It feels good, doesn’t it?” Jay beckoned Sloane closer, licking into her mouth eagerly. “Hm…? You’re doing such a good job, making yourself cum like this.” The singer was fucking her through her orgasm, the added tightness making his hips stutter.

 

Sloane was muttering incoherently against Jay’s mouth, grinding her hips into his. “Fuck, baby. I can’t—” Jay pushed Sloane on to the bed, and she whined at the sudden emptiness. “You’re an asshole, you know that, right?”

 

The singer shrugged; he was already sitting up on his heels, stroking his dick. “Hands and knees, Doll.” Sloane was slow to move, so he slapped her ass again, grinning when she glared at him. “What? You’re the one moving like you don’t wanna cum, again.”

 

“I can’t fucking stand you.” Sloane flopped on to her stomach, grabbing a pillow, and using it prop up her lower half. “Short-ass motherfuc—”

 

Jay grabbed Sloane’s hip, holding her in place. “Keep talkin’ shit, Sloane.” He warned, sliding the tip of his cock over her folds. Sloane whined and arched her back, desperate for more friction.

 

“Then stop fucking around, Jaebeom.” She spat his name out as if it were a curse. “I swear to God—” The CEO snapped his hips forward without warning. “ _fuck_.”

 

“That didn’t sound like what I wanted to hear, Doll.” Jaebum was teasing her now, pulling all the way out before plunging back in. “Why don’t you try again?”

 

“Jaebeom…” Sloane rotated her hips over Jay’s cock, face half-buried in the bedsheets. “There. Right there, baby. _Please_.”

 

Sloane couldn’t see it, but she was sure Jay was smirking. “Ah… here?” he rolled his hips, and Sloane cried out. “You look so good like this, Doll. Begging for me to fuck you.” He started a maddening pace, his thrusts slow but unbelievably deep.

 

The Music Contributor cursed, the bedsheets twisting between her fingers. “Jay, stop playing—”

 

“Tell me what I want to hear.” Jay’s fingers were in Sloane’s hair now, and he used that leverage to pull her flush against his chest. He yanked Sloane’s head back, nosing at her neck. “You wanna cum, don’t you?”

 

“Y-yeah. I wanna cum.” Sloane turned her head, letting out a little whine when their lips met. “Please—”

 

Jay hummed, stilling his hips. “Then stop being stubborn.” He let go of Sloane’s hair, and she fell back on the bed. “Tell me what I want to hear.”

 

Sloane rolled onto her back, grinning. Her hair fell into her face, and she flipped it over her shoulder. “I told you to make me, right?” she spread her legs, and Jay did not hesitate to take up the invitation.

 

“You’re starting to piss me off, Doll.” he slipped two fingers into Sloane, curling them, and making her moan. “Say it.”

 

“I-I can’t—”

 

“You can.” Jay snapped his hips forward, and suddenly, his fingers were replaced by his cock. “Do you know why, Doll?” Sloane shook her head, panting lightly. “Don’t lie to me, Sloane.”

 

“Because I’m yours.” She reached out, scratching her nails down the singer’s chest. “And you’re m-mine.”

 

Jay let out a satisfied hum, and the speed of his hips quickened. “That’s my girl.” He draped himself over Sloane’s body, kissing any patch of skin he could reach. “Who else is gonna fuck you like I do?”

 

“Oh, fuck—” Sloane’s back arched, and her hands fisted themselves into the bedsheets. “No one, baby. Only you.”

 

“Damn straight.” Jay pressed a finger to her clit, making her cry out. “You’re close, huh? Let me hear you, Doll.”

 

“I’m gonna cum. I’m gonna—” Sloane cut herself off, her eyes rolling back. “Fuck.”

 

Jay straightened up, grinning. “Feels good?” Sloane’s inability to answer made him laugh. He fucked the raven-haired woman through her orgasm, rubbing her clit until she was whining from overstimulation. “One more, right? You look so fucking good when you cum for me.”

 

“Yeah?” the singer hummed, taking Sloane’s hand and bringing up to his neck. She squeezed lightly, biting on her bottom lip. “Am I being good for you, baby?”

 

Jay let out a choked little gasp, his hips bucking. “Fuck yeah.” Sloane watched him, grinning a bit; she loved Jay like this. “Harder Sloane, c’mon—” as soon as she tightened her grip, the singer came, bringing a hand up to his mouth to muffle his moans.

 

“Yes, Jay—” the singer was fucking Sloane through his orgasm, his hips slapping the back of Sloane’s thighs lewdly. “shit, right there, baby— oh.” She let out a surprised laugh, pulling Jay down for a kiss.

 

“Damn, baby.” It took a minute, but Jay rolled off Sloane, throwing a hand over his eyes. With his other hand, he pulled her sweaty body into his. “How long do you think it’ll be until we know you’re pregnant?”

 

Sloane scoffed but snuggled into Jay’s chest. “Ask me after I take a taxi to the nearest pharmacy and swallow a Plan B pill.” The singer slapped her ass, and she squealed. “Dick.”

 

“You say that now, but I’m the one you’ll be coming to when your ankles swell.”

 

“They’ll swell because of you!”

 

A loud cry sounded through the baby monitor, and Sloane pushed at Jay’s chest. “I know, I’m going.” The singer rolled out of bed, bending over to pull his shorts back on. “Hey, I was thinking about ordering Italian for dinner. You in?”

 

“Mhm.” Sloane rolled on to her stomach. “Go take care of the baby so you can come back in here and clean me up.”

 

Jay walked over to the door, but stopped, turning on his heel. “You’re not… are you really planning on buying that pill?”

 

“ _Go_.”


End file.
